10: Prayers

Week 10: Prayers  Hola mis queridos :) Another AMAZING week in Agricolae Oriental! Besides melting like a popsicle in the heat of the sun that is. I am getting so tan it is crazy. Or so I thought until I stood next to Hermana Wolferts who has only been here 2 weeks, and I looked completely white again... well, at least I can claim the ivory. The first few days were jam-packed with citas (appointments) and we had a lot of members present-- especially with the youth which is our goal. The goal for the mission for each companionship, is to have 10 members present at discussions each week but I don't think I have ever even had 5, so we have been working on that and this week we had 7!!! We would have had more, but the same old story. When our member comes with us our investigators don't show, when our investigators show up, our members don't.  But I am happy with our progress and know that we can do better next week.             The latter half of the week was less than excellent, but so it goes. We had 8 menos activos {less actives} in the Capilla again!!!!  And this time we had 2 investigators :) I was so happy. We have had multiple experiences where we knocked on the door of someone who hadn't been to church in years, we (pseudo) fight our way in and are about to share our message only to have them burst into tears and tell us that they were just waiting for some to come and show them the way. So many have told us that in their prayers they had specifically asked that morning that they could find the path again and that God would show them  where they needed to be. They explain that they felt lost and that right before we knocked they were praying to find comfort and love. Those moments fill me with joy. I look them in the eye and say, "Hermana estamos aqui como representantes de Jesucristo. Estamos aqui para decir lo que el diria si el estuviera aqui."  {Sister, we are here as representatives of Jesus Christ.  We are here to say what he would say if he were here." We tell them to come back to church. That they will feel Christ's love. That they will have more peace in their week. We promise them un buen de bendiciones {abundant blessings} if they will only come to church y participar in la santa cena {and partake of the sacrament}.        One lady, I don't know how I was bold enough, but I called her to repentance. I looked her straight in the eyes and told her to repent, stop smoking, be more kind to her daughter, and to come to church with us. And she did. I love these people and I can feel how much Heavenly Father loves them to.          I bear testimony that Christ lives, that he knows each of us individually, that he answers our prayers and that he wants nothing more than to bless us, but blessings are predicated upon obedience. I know that for every commandment we keep we will receive blessings. Why postpone the day of your blessings? Why wait to repent? Repent today. Change your life for better today. If we love God we will keep his commandments. The only thing we can give to God is our will, our agency, our decisions. Only when we consistently choose him can we show how grateful we are for all he has given us. I love you all, Peace out, Hermana Lambert