HOLA FAMILIA,
So I just finished my first transfer here in Cuauhtemoc and man was it amazing. First of all, we had a miracle baptism this Sunday! Elder Laguna and I were doing our weekly meeting with the mission leader when he informed us that his daughter was dating a non-member who had come to church two times and who was interested in meeting with us missionaries. We set up a time to go by on Monday night and had one of the most powerful lessons that I have ever had. We taught baptism and invited him to be baptized to which he said without any hesitation, yes. He then asked us why are there so many churches and how he could know if our church is the one with the correct authority. To answer his question we shared lesson about the restoration of the church. As we taught the First Vision, Elder Laguna had the opportunity to teach the experience Joseph Smith had. While he was detailing the experience, I was praying the Spirit would testify to Erik the truthfulness of what we were sharing. Almost immediately, I felt the Spirit enter the room with almost an extra-terrestial force; one of the strongest confirmations by the Spirit that I have ever had; I could tell that Erik felt it too. After we explained the First Vision, I asked Erik if he believed that Joseph Smith was called of God like we explained and testified. Without even the slightest bit of hesitation he answered, YES!!! Flash forward 6 days later and he was baptized! Every baptism is a miracle and a work of faith but this baptism was one of the most miraculous that I have had yet.
So I received a new companion named Elder Mendez. He is from Tabasco, Mexico and has a really cool accent where he makes a "th" sound when he pronounces "s" in Spanish. He is super hilarious and I am sure that will make the best of this coming transfer. He has had a hard time in the past with laziness and disobedience but I hope to help him work hard and see that it brings the most amazing fruits and blessings! It was actually pretty hard to say goodbye to Elder Laguna because we had become such great friends. Last night as he was finishing packing we talked about what our first impressions were of the area and of each other. He told me that he repeatedly thought, "que honda que este" which basically means "what's his problem." He told me that he was pretty annoyed by my desire to be exactly obedient but decided to go with it and looking back, he told me he was thankful for the things I helped him to see. He told me that he hasn't been so obedient before and has never achieved the number of lessons, contacts, and overall success before. Basically, it was a cool experience to hear such wonderful things I was able to do to help him and then to thank him for his support and advice as I learned to be a leader. This has been my hardest but favorite transfer that I have had thus far!!
Tonight Elder Mendez and I hit the streets and I have decided that I am going to apply all the diligence and knowledge I gained from the last transfer right off in the start and we are going to have another successful transfer!! I am super happy and I know I am making this phrase cliche but it never gets old to say, but I LOVE EVERY MOMENT of the mission! At the end of every month completed part of me rejoices in the success and progression that I am having and seeing, but the other part groans because I don't want to stop. I have so much to do and accomplish that I am going to have to use every moment even more and more diligently and effectively. I love the Lord and His wonderful work! I love you all and hope that you have a wonderful week!
Con mucho amor,
Elder Janis
