19 Nov. 2001

Family

Hey! How's everyone doing? Things here are going well. This day today starts what's called a "semana de consagracion" - "Consecration Week". I think I already explained it to you the last time so I won't go into detail, but we're all pretty stoked and stressed at the same time. This also marks the last full week of some of my good missionary buddies - Elder Lindgren and Elder Rosales, mainly; they were the group to leave the MTC the day before I got there. I'm so OLD! Argh! I'm just marvelled at how fast all this has gone by. We have changes coming up on the 29th, and then the next changes will be the 10th of January, and then the 23 of Febrero.

Yesterday was the confirmation of Matilde. She's a way cool older lady - a widow - who contacted us in the bakery. She had gone to church a few times in Atlanta with her cousin and had liked it and wanted to find the Mormons in Venezuela - and then she found us. She's been practically an investigator of gold. She was also the first baptism (when he did the ordinance) of Elder Maxfield! We held the baptism service last Tuesday, which went great. There were 3 non-members there and to boot it, the Spirit was WAY there. So that went well. And today at 11:00 a.m. she's going to buy us lunch! Wow!

Another way cool thing happened this week. It was like Thursday and we were in a big plaza teaching charlas and stuff. To work more efficiently, we split up, him going to teach a couple in one part and me in another part (but don't worry, we can always see each other). So my comp was like 30 feet away talking with a family and I was sitting down teaching a guy and his 2 twins when all of a sudden I see out of the corner of my eye a group of like 3 people, in their early 20's, walk up to me and this guy who I'm teaching. At first I didn't pay any attention but then one of them said, "Perdon" so we both turned around and standing there was one of my first converts, Antonietta Santos (who got baptized together with the Avlar family when I was with my trainer)! I couldn't believe it! And with her was her sister (who got baptized by Elder Norton when I left). The first thing she asked was how I was and the second thing she said was how skinny I was! It was so cool because especially lately I've been wondering how my old converts have been doing, and it was as if Heavenly Father wanted me to know that they were doing well. I only saw her, but she also informed me that the Avlar family - who moved to the States shortly after I left the area and whose house is now the Elder's house - is doing way good and they're about to move to Utah. It was such a big relief, knowing that they're doing well. And then the following night I got word from Puerto Cabello that my first convert there, Douglas Gonzalez who was a reference of the bishop, just got sealed to the bishop's daughter. (That's the sole purpose of what we do - baptized people so that they can go to the temple a year later and get sealed to their family to be able to be exalted! The scripture we all know in DyC came to my mind - "And if it so be that ye should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father! And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!" (DyC 18:15-16) I felt a small, but delicious part of that two times this week, and my joy is full (Alma 29:9).

I love you guys! I'm thankful for you!

Love, Nick