Weekly Letter June 27, 2016
Hey guys; I hope everyone has had a great week.
On Monday this week we had a family home evening with the Valenzuela family. They are all members but they come to church pretty irregularly so we visited them, talked about the restoration of the gospel, and they invited us to some pizza. As a sidenote, everyone here puts ketchup on their pizza. I wonder if that's just a Guatemalan thing.
On Tuesday we had a multizone conference with President and Sister Crapo, the assistants, and all of the missionaries who are serving outside of Guatemala City. Much was mentioned about obedience, exercising faith, and planning effectively. It was a great conference.
...(cut of) elders in Gualan and all four of us worked in their area. I was able to visit many of my converts and old investigators. First we visited the Ramirez Family and the dad, Lucio, invited his sister and her daughters to the discussion. In the course of the lesson we asked Lucio's sister Rosa if she'd like to be baptized and she said that she had been searching for someone to baptize her. She and two of her daughters now have a baptism date scheduled for the 30th of July. Lucio and Gloria Ramirez and the four children they have that are over the age of eight are all baptized members of the church and they recounted with joy to Rosa the experience of their baptism. The Ramirez family are some of the humblest people I know and yet they are such happy people. They fed us bone soup before we left (literally just cow bones boiled in water), showing us their generosity in spite of their limited resources.
Later I visited Cristino Garcia, one of the first people I taught in my entire mission. When he saw me he almost started to cry and said "Elder Dawson, is that you?" He reminded me that when I said goodbye to him when I left Gualan I had told him that every time he remembered me that he should remember what I taught him about keeping the commandments and going to church. Cristino has been struggling with alcoholism but he told me that in his dark moments that he always remembers me and remembers what I taught him about the things of God.
Some of my converts are struggling to go to church and keep the commandments but I told each one of them that the great desire of my heart is to live with them in the celestial kingdom. I told them that I would perhaps be giving them my last mortal goodbye but that if they kept the faith that we would have a glorious reunion in the life to come.
One more experience and I'll wrap this letter up. On Monday we got a call from a guy named Henry who had found a piece of church literature with our phone number on it. The pamphlet was titled "The Plan of Salvation" and he was intrigued by what he read. So intrigued, it turns out, that he feels that what he read was a sign from God indicating that he should join the church. On Thursday we visited his home and after talking about his purpose on earth he expressed desires to be baptized. On Saturday we gave him a tour of the chapel and taught him about the restoration and he says he believes that Joseph Smith was a prophet. On Sunday he came to church and told us he had read from the Book of Mormon for several hours the previous evening and he participated in Sunday school and priesthood meeting, answering questions that the teachers posed to the students.
A couple of weeks ago we fasted for a miracle in our area and I think Henry is that miracle. I'll keep you updated on his progress.
"Mormonism" taught Joseph F. Smith, "makes good men better men, and ... takes even bad men and makes good ones of them. That is what 'Mormonism' will do if we will only permit it to do it. If we will bow to its mandates and adopt its precepts in our lives, it will make us the sons and daughters of God, worthy eventually to dwell in the presence of the Almighty in the heavens."
I know this to be true. I love you all and hope you have great week. - Elder Dawson
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| Elder Proby |
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| Elder Alarcon |
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| Ramirez Family |
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| Cristino |
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| Tona |
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| Silvia and Dennis |
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| Cuyan Family |
