EaRtHqUaKe! And Venezuelans! And Surreal Miracles!

February 4, 2019

I feel to give an answer to Dad´s questions this week in the email! 

By the way, how is the teaching going with the referral/reference you were given, who was the mother of a member? That was a wonderful story. 🙂  I know that it will be tough with the Figueroa family, but are they doing well? We pray for the families you are teaching almost every day. We love them through you, and hope the Lord blesses them as you teach them. 🙂 

Sorry to start out with a bummer, Dad, but that family, we think that they got wrapped up in a evangelic church and they still haven’t gone to church. Even though they said they would a long time ago. D: 

The Venezuelan Figueroa Family was doing really awesome. We talked with the dad’s sister, Kimberly, and she is really awesome. She just got here from Venezuela. I think I mentioned that she wanted to get baptized, right? So we went back and taught her the restoration and we set the baptismal date for Feb 16 and she seemed a little discouraged. Translated-“When would you like to be baptized?” “Is this Sunday good?” *our mouths drop. THEN GUESS WHAT. Knock knock who’s there? Jehovah’s Witnesses.  “Can we share a scripture really quick.” *They start sharing, and they see us there and they are like “uhh Hola!” And get really nervous” But they were there for a good 10 minutes. It was surreal. After that, she gets back and sits down “look at this!” she says “It’s the same thing kind of” We look at her and my companion says that they don’t believe in birthdays nor Christmas. Shock hits her like a train. “No way nuh uh! I like what you guys are teaching a lot better. ” So we said if she goes to church she could get baptized this week! 

To be continued…. Because none of that family came to church… They don’t answer their phone…. So we are hoping and praying that everything is okay. 

Another miracle is Celso, that’s his name. He is an electrical engineer who we gave a Book of Mormon too. We visited him. And we couldn’t get to his house so we taught him in his car. 1 point for car lessons! And he was flipping through the Book of Mormon and had questions written in the book through out the whole book minus Alma and Ether. So the most important parts he read! We read Moroni 10:3-5 and usually we have to help them understand what they need to do. But he said “okay. I will do that” I was feeling like, this is so surreal. He is going on a trip to the United States for a conference because of his electrical engineering business casually. Hehe he is awesome

Of the people who did go to church: The Machuca Family; Another miracle! So this family we passed by and the daughter in the family had been taught by the missionaries like 3 years ago. We knock on the door in a place near the stake center called Matices. And she opens it and says we can pass by on another day because her family is not there (One of the daughters who is like 22) So then later in the week, Elder Freeman y Elder Pineda tell me that someone pulled off on the side of the street to tell them that the missionaries should pass by at 7:30 on Saturday. So we went and the whole family was there. The mom just starts thanking us for coming and tears start running down her face. She said that she went inactive from the church 25 years ago and was baptized when she was 17 now she has a 3 kids the oldest 25 and the youngest 16. Her family she says is falling to pieces. She wants them to be more united. Guess what, they all have learned English. They would speak in English, and we would respond in half Spanish because some words they are still learning. It was awesome. The 16 year old son is currently agnostic but wants to find God. Honestly, he is the leader in his family. His oldest sister before listened to the missionaries. So the son and the Mother came to church!  And they were really happy and found that the members really were there for them. 

Other Venezuelans! David, who’s a member, talked to us and said “visit us some time, my wife isn’t a member.” We pass by and we keep on finding new people to teach because there are 10 Venezuelans that live there. So Javier one time, saw us walking when he was walking on the street in Malaga 2, a gated comunity, and asked us “you guys belong to……………..” uhhh I say “A church?” “YES a church!, what do you guys do? I want to learn more of what you teach” So we taught him. We told David. They went to church together. He Loved it.

There were some other kids who went to church who are not members. The Arguello Family. Basically one of the nieces turned 9 and all her family is staying at her house for a while. So that’s awesome and all the kids went to church. The mom thought that they hated it but we ask them and they say that it was great! We are teaching them. They have some of the Articles of Faith memorized! 😀

THERE WAS AN EARthQUAKE THIS MORNING!! We were about to leave to go eat lunch at a place called El Dorado (like the movie) and we were praying. Elder Peery was praying and Wohohoohohoh…. Elder Peery keeps on praying Woohhophohooh and we were feeling like LETS GET OUT and so we opened the door and everyone was outside. It was a 5.98 or something centered in Las Playas. No one is hurt. 😀

Atentamente,

Elder Wilhelm