Large Plates
A very fast week. Latinos know how to party. Our Heavenly Father answered our prayers and Carmen made it to church.
Wow okay this week was actually such a blur. Also Pday this week is on Tuesday cause we had some Christmas service at bishops storehouse yesterday. So that put my brain in an even weirder spot cause I feel like I have no idea what day it is haha.
So here's the summary:
The first part of the week consisted of a lot of meetings and a lot of contacting. I also got to practice piano for the first time in a while because Hermana Morris is singing in our Christmas devotional tomorrow. (Pretty sure my piano is going to be a train wreck but oh well haha)
One of the biggest highlights of the week was the ward Christmas party! Not to diss on Utah ward parties, but Latinos just do it better. Basically it starts out the same: everyone grabs food and eats and talks, and then there's a Christmas program. But then the guys they hired to play the marimba start putting on a show, everyone gets excited, and then the DJ comes in with the latin music and everyone starts salsa dancing and shaking maracas and just having a grand old time. You just had to be there. I will forever be disappointed by Utah ward parties from this point forward haha.
Also! Church! We had our Christmas Service & we got a bunch of interested people at church! Including my best friend Carmen! She had a miracle happen this week and for some reason (ahem… God's hand) she didn't have work on Sunday which NEVER happens. All the people who came loved it. I think most of them are planning on coming back next week. Also, English class is going super well and lots of the people who are learning English are also really interested in learning about the church too!
Small Plates
Erick. God is aware of our needs and He provides how and when we need Him to. He has a plan and a purpose for you.
Erick! We met him yesterday and it was such a blessing. He couldn't make it to English class on Sunday but he really wants to learn English because his daughter speaks English and Spanish, and he wants to be able to progress here in America. Basically we had our first little English class, where we taught him the alphabet and a couple phrases, and all of a sudden we were sitting down hearing his whole life story. He went through some really rough stuff and made some poor choices, but found God through rehab, where missionaries in Ecuador would help him learn more about God so he could feel like he had God with him through his rehabilitation. He knows who the missionaries are, and regrets not letting them into his home back in the day. His sister's a member and she's a good example to him. He talked for so long and at one point he said "I don't normally open up about all this, but I know you two are people of God and that you'll hear what I need to say." At the end he said "sorry, I got distracted. I don't know if I was supposed to be here to learn English or to talk about God." It was just a super cool experience because there was so much evidence of God's hand in his story, and in our crossing paths. When we messaged him on Facebook, we told him we knew God had a plan and a purpose for him. Apparently one of the things he's been told before is "God has a purpose for you." And that's what has kept him from going back to drugs during some really hard experiences he's had the last year. So when we said that, he knew we were inspired. He'll be at English class and church on Sunday with his daughter. He has so much faith and I'm excited to get to know him better and teach him more.
Our Heavenly Father really loves each of His children so much. I know he's looking out for me, and for the people I serve with, and for the people we teach. And I know he's looking out for you. He loves you. And I love you all too! Merry Christmas!!
No comments:
Post a Comment