Week Thirty Eight - Back to Lakewood for a Baptism and a Rough Week....

Hey fam!  I don't really have much to tell you this week, for a change.  This week was kinda rough.  It was just one of those weeks where almost nothing seems to go your way.  The littlest things just pile up and pile up until you want to scream!  It was just one of those weeks where nobody seemed to have time for missionaries.  Every body we talked to:  "mucho trabajo, no puedo, muy ocupado, no tiempo, ninos, hijos, trabajo, ocupado, trabajo ocupado trabajo ocupado" alright alright I get it!!!  What is so frustrating, and I wish I could change so badly, is that people have lives.  They are caught up in the things of the world, and the adversary has them convinced that they either have no time for, or they want nothing to do with missionaries.
   Despite the frustrating week, there were some positives, and I did learn some things.  What I realized this week is that I need to be more bold, clear, and upfront about the message we share.  It is my responsibility to help people understand the importance and essentiality of the Restored Gospel.  Because if you don't have time for missionaries, you don't have time for God.  We are talking about SALVATION here!  And guess what?  You do have time.  Because there are over 15 million members of the Church that are busy with work and school and kids and everything else!  The only difference is that they understand the importance of church attendance, living the Gospel, and putting God first in their lives, because they have experienced the blessings that come from doing so.  As we do what God asks of us, He will provide better than we can provide.  People that say they don't have time are lacking the desires and just don't get it.  I know that if people would just give the missionaries a chance, and give our message a chance, give the Book of Mormon a chance, there is no way that they would not receive their own personal witness from God of the truthfulness and importance of the Restored Gospel.  I promise everyone I talk to that blessings will come from doing what we ask.  Why it is so hard for people to simply just HOPE that that is true, and give it a chance, I will never know.  Who doesn't want more blessings?!

   So, as you can probably see, I am a little bit frustrated.  Some of you may think that that right there is a little bit over the top, and maybe it is, but just maybe it isn't.  Being a missionary is frustrating, but it is so very worth it, too!  Because I learn things.  Another thing that I learned and realized and saw this week, is that I don't want to be a worldly person.  I have witnessed on my mission more than ever before that the natural man and the things of this world do not bring happiness.  While I am still a very worldly and very natural man, I have never wanted to overcome the natural man more than I do right now.  I've got a long way to go, but I am progressing.  That is the great thing about life, it's all about progression, and the Gospel helps me do it! 

Another reason why missions are so very worth it, is because there really are people out there that God has prepared, people that do accept missionaries, people that do have desires to learn and change, people that do have the hope to give us missionaries a chance.  Elder Haskell texted me this week and told me that one of our investigators in Lakewood passed his baptismal interview and will be getting baptized this Saturday!  So I will have the privilege of going back there on Saturday to see it.   Woohoo! 

   The Texas Dallas Mission apparently piloted the "JustServe" program for the whole year of 2013.  I never knew the details of it, but I just know we were encouraged to do 10 hours of service a week.  Now it is over and I am mad.  You are right, it is such a good way to use our time, especially during the slow hours of weekdays when everybody is at school and work.  I really think knocking does more harm than good for our image.  We knocked a dominantly white street this week and they were brutally rude, as always.  It seemed so fruitless!  Service is the best way to win the hearts of the people.  But who knows what the future entails for the Texas Dallas Mission.      

   So last night we were eating dinner at our ward mission leaders house.  He has four kids that are super cool.  The youngest is 4 and named Adli.  He was bugging me the whole time we were eating dinner, trying to get me race him.  He was going nuts waiting for me to finish eating!  Finally, I was down to one last bight of my dessert, and I had half a cup of soda left.  I was stuffed and struggling to finish it all, and I was resting from eating when he took the fork out of my hand, ate my last bite for me, and chugged the rest of my soda.  Haha!  I thought that was hilarious.  Then I had no choice other than to leave him in my dust. 

-I didn't get to watch a lick of the Super Bowl.  We didn't even realize it was Super Bowl Sunday until it was nearly over!

-It has been cold lately and it rained yesterday, but nothing too crazy. 

-I slept a little better this week.  Still no earplugs, but I told a member about Elder Malpartida's snoring, and she said she has something for me as well as something for him to solve the problem, we just haven't been able to go over to her house yet. 

-I am in a Spanish branch, which is smaller than a ward, but yes, it is all Spanish. 

-Senior companion is nice.  It's a little difficult not knowing the area or the members too well yet, but my companion is easy to work with. 

-All car.  Our area is huge and constant hills, but we might have to ride bikes towards the end of the month if we run out of miles.  That would be brutal, but it might happen this month haha

-My camera lens won't come out and it says "lens error".  I sent it home on Thursday with a few other things, but they said it won't get to you until this Thursday.  So please just send the camera back when you can with a new SD card.  And you know what would be neat?  If you took a few pictures of Toby or the house or the fam on the new SD card before you sent it to me.  You know what I mean? 

-Elder Haskell tells me I have a package from the Hinton's waiting for me at the Lakewood post office, so he is either going to forward it to me or I will get it on Saturday when I go for the baptism.

Well I think that'll do it for this week.  I sent off a letter to y'all the other day.  I got an email from Brynn today about her call.  I am so excited for her!  Christopher is in my prayers, as well as the rest of you.  Have a semana maravillosa!

Elder D. Williams