Monday, June 20th 2011

Aló Família!!!

Let me just apologize for the lack of the email from last week, but now you can bet that there is a pretty crazy awesome story for this week, huh? Well, my companion and I were really hurting for people to find and teach these past few weeks and I had really not been completely motivated to work as well, unfortunately. I started to feel really sad on Sunday night because I knew that I hadn´t done very well that week and I wanted to do better. I really prayed to Heavenly Father that He could help us find someone to teach and someone to help come to know the Church. As we were walking home on Sunday night last week, we passed a guy on a bicycle heading our direction. I waved at him and said hi and he just kept on going. I put my head down and kept walking as well. All of the sudden, I felt something walking with me at my side, and I knew it wasn´t my companion because he was on my other side. That man had turned around and started walking with us. He asked where we were from and what we were doing. He got super interested in the Church and followed all the way to the Chapel. As we were talking, I could tell that he wanted to invite us to come to his house one day, but he was too scared to ask. So I took the initiative and asked, "Robinson, could we visit you and your wife tomorrow night?" He got extremely happy and said he would tell his wife and they´d be waiting for us. That night, I didn´t realize the answer that God was giving me. We went to his house on Monday night and taught him about baptism and how it helps us get closer to God and that it will help his life. He lives with his wife who has suffered mental problems her entire life and he was kind enough to become her husband to help her through her difficulties that she has. He works with painting and in his spare time he fixes computers for his neighbors (I spoke a lot about my dad with him after I found that out!) We came back the next day to teach about Joseph Smith and the Restoration of the Gospel. As were got to the part about the Book of Mormon, I reached into my bag to grab one to give to him, but I had accidentaly left it in another house we were visiting. I got extremely sad and upset with myself, but then Robinson said, "wait a minute brother, I found something 10 years ago that I think you guys could help me find out what it is." He went into his room and grabbed the oldest Book of Mormon I have ever seen! He said that he found it one day 10 years ago and saw "Another Testament of Jesus Christ" written on it and decided not to throw it out. The Spirit then testified to me that this was the man that Heavenly Father wanted us to find. My testimony and heart were edified after this experience and I really couldn´t explain all of the happiness I felt because He had answered my prayers.

We have also been teaching a family of 10 this month! There is the dad and nine children! The mother of the family left the house nine years ago and doesn´t want any type of responsibility with the children, so now the dad has to work twice as much and take care of everyone! He has so much love for his family and really has done well in teaching his kids the good values of being a successful person in society. He teaches them all about the Law of Chastity, the Word of Wisdom, and pretty much everything that a parent of the Church would teach. He came to Church yesterday and he and his WHOLE family will be baptized this Saturday!!! Can you imagine all those people in white???!!! I am so extremely happy! Then next month we are going to marry another couple and baptize them and there little son! The Lord has truly blessed us here in Lorena!

Well, it´s the end of the transfer again and I am truly praying that I don´t leave. I love this place and I have so much more to do here, but if the Lord wants me to go, I will. We don´t have lunch today so I am making american pancakes for my companion!!! We are both extremely grateful for the package! All of members loved the Twizzlers!!! I love you all and am so grateful for all of help you all give me! Have a great and fabulous week!

Elder Steven Clark