Dear Family,
Despite the lack of visible success this past week, it wasn’t a bad one…it was actually pretty good I suppose day to day. Like every day seemed good in the moment, but then looking back on the week as a whole just not a lot of stuff that happened…for example one day we find people, set up appointments for later in the week, and they aren’t interested, or they swear on their children’s lives that they will come to church and then they don’t show.
People’s agency can be frustrating, but I decided there is a bigger picture kind of thing going on…trying to figure out what the Lord is trying to teach me and what he wants me to learn out here. Just trying to learn all I can and keep perspective. We actually had a lot that we planned to have come to church and stuff but last minute stuff just fell through. No worries, I’ll keep swimming.
This week we went on splits with Elder W. for the last time. He goes home on June 22nd and that’ll be tough because he has been my best friend in the mission from day one it seems. My first zone leader over in Inglewood. Can’t believe he is going home already. You should look him up and thank him for all he has done for me.
This week we focused a lot on baptism-like inviting everyone we know and even those we don’t to follow Christ’s example. Its really fun actually, trying to tie people’s weird questions/concerns back to baptism and how it can help them personally. Kind of like a big puzzle with eternal consequences I suppose. I have had a few really good lessons this week that were really spiritual, including one this morning with a girl that was a referral from the non member dad of a part member family. Pretty cool.
We taught her this morning at her parents’ store and she seems way good, hopefully one of those nuggets and not just fools gold. She accepted baptism and really wants to feel God’s love again as she hasn’t felt it in a while. The spirit was super strong when we invited her to be baptized and then when we extended the date she said she would have to pray about it…which is fine by me because that’s what we want them to do anyways right?
Also this past week we had a few really good lessons with people we have found. It is amazing how many people there are who really do not know simple things that we know…like God wants to hear from us, prayer is a phone conversation, not just a voicemail to some imaginary machine. Me and Elder K. are really working on our teaching skills at teaching with the fundamentals and the spirit. I feel like when people will sit down and hear what we have to say, we can bring the spirit and hit them with it like a ton of bricks, the trick is getting them to sit down and listen.
I gave a training this past Friday at district meeting about faith and miracles and it was one of the most spiritual messages I feel like I have shared. It is really cool to learn how to bring the spirit strongly. Like try different things that seem to really invite it, other things that don’t, pinpoint the moment when it enters strong, times when it isn’t as strong, then trying to imitate the strong times in every lesson/training. It is a skill I didn’t even know existed, but I am trying to figure out how to acquire it and then develop it.
I went on splits with Elder G.-a District Leader in Echo Park, and covers downtown…like the heart of LA and it was way fun, talked to all different kinds of people and ended up praying with this one guy standing on a busy street corner hands on each others’ shoulders and he rested his cheek on the top of my head…one of those moments where we thank him then walk away and just crack up haha.
What else happened this week that was just priceless?? Hmmm…I know there was something else. Last P day for memorial day we had a big barbeque at the mission home, President Baker on the grill and then played ultimate Frisbee…that was way fun…well I can’t seem to remember the other thing I was going to say, but I love you guys a ton and am so grateful for this trial the Lord is blessing me with, I know there are things that I am meant to learn from this and I love trying to figure out what it is. The Church is true, Christ lives, isn’t it fun to be able to say that you know that? Love you guys. Peace be the Journey J
Love,
Elder Molinaro
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