How is everyone and can
you believe it is 2014??? I can´t, and it reminded me that i will be an
ancient spinster by the time i get home - 24! haha. Weathered and worn
with bolivian mosquito bites and possibly rabid dog bites because this
week a dog tried to bite me but luckily i whipped my fingers right outta
his nast mouth.
Besides that, things have been really good. i am
still the most inpatient person ever, and hate myself every day that i
cannot magically speak or understand spanish. however, the lord has
blessed me so incredibly much this week that i could not help feeling
happy and more and more realizing i am meant to be here. First of all,
things were starting to get bad with my bolivian companion because it
was so hard for her to understand why i cant speak spanish. so she was
being extremely short with me and getting frustrated and i thought i was
going to die. but then a small miracle happened and she decided to read
about the attributes of christ in the liahona. she must have really
been touched by the spirit because she told me all about how she wanted
to work specifically on charity and patience, and both of decided to
make it our new goal to attempt to have patience in all things. since
then, things are averagely frustrating, but our relationship has
improved so much and our ability to communicate the important things
regardless of the language situation. in turn, i have tried to exhibit
more love and patience and have started to learn so much from hermana
rivero and really really respect her. she is actually such an excellent
girl. And even both of us have seen my spanish progress little by
liiiittle over the last two and half weeks, and she has even been
incorporating the book of mormon in so many of our lessons, even in the
first visits, as i suggested.
This week i resolved to try to stop thinking about
how hard things are and about how easy life would be at home and just
think more about the people and attempt to be less selfish. Wow. God
immediately has blessed with a deeper love for everyone here, and i have
felt the truthfulness of this gospel stronger this week than in any
recent time i can remember besides some of the times at the mtc.
Personal and companion study time is an immense spiritual aid. We search
the scriptures for help in our lessons, and when i read those words i
can´t help but feel my testimony grow, like literally an expansion of my
mind and trust in God. A lot of my struggles in the past have been
intellectual doubts and mental disputation because of what the world
tells me to know and what the spirit tells me to know, and when i read
the scriptures it is like a light breaking through those confusions and
reassuring me that this has to be true. This has helped me so much in my
teaching and bearing testimony, because before i was afraid that with
my always-questioning personality i would not be able to bear a genuine
testimony to these people. but now i feel more and more confidant
telling everyone that i have a testimony of these things. This week we
went to the home of a family in our ward to ask for references and share
a couple scriptures. the dad is a peruvian returned missionary and both
have been members all their live. this is pretty rare in our area - our
ward has maybe about 50% activity and even a lot of the active members
are struggling. anyway, i felt the spirit so strong with this family.
the contrast between them and some of the broken homes we visit was so
stark. it was not a physical contrast - this family lived in the same
crumbling concrete shack like home with mostly no roof and dirt and
concrete for a floor, just like the other people we visit - but the
contrast in feeling was incredible. the kids were so happy, the moms
face was lit up with kindness, the dad talked to his wife and children
with respect and tenderness. it was the closest i have felt here to
being in my own home, and i KNEW it was because of the example of jesus
christ and the application of his gospel. it just made my resolve
stronger to try to share what i have.
This week was really interesting with investigators.
we have one girl getting baptized in two weeks, she is the sister of
another recent convert. it has been so interesting teaching her new
concepts and seeing her overcome some things and understand why, such as
with the word of wisdom. she has really grown and is excited to become a
member. Jose Flores is a very lonely man whose wife died a few years
ago and whose children do not really take care of him. he expressed his
sorrow and my companion shared D&C 122. its super and short and i
was almost feeling chills. that scripture is perfect for understanding
the true nature of God, as literally a loving, perfect father who is
with us "for ever and ever." We also are teaching Fatima and actually
got all the way to the restauration! usually people have been dropping
us before then. i am praying that she will continue to remain
interested. i testified multiple times that i knew if she prayed about
our message she would receive an answer in order to know for herself.
she lives in a dirty little shack with several children, and a man who
doesnt believe in God and straight up told us family is not super
important to him. it just made me want this for her so much more.
anyway, my new motto is 2 Timothy 1:7 "For God has
not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind"
So beautiful right? Every single one of our fondest dreams can be
realized through Jesus Christ and his perfect doctrine. I want you guys
to know that i am so happy to be here, learning more and more each day
about this doctrine and attempting to serve God´s incredible children.
Love you all.
Interesting tidbits: i have to cut off one of my
ringlets for an inactive hermana in our ward because she said she would
only come to church if i would give her one, so i agreed, and she came!
i got called the devil by some crazy man who saw me teaching, actually a
she-devil "diabla" haha. my kill count of cockroaches is perhaps in
the double digits.
Love, Hermana Bingham
No comments:
Post a Comment