Dear Family,
The mini-mission is always fun to be a part of. We don’t get to have one of young men come with us, but it is fun to see them all and see how nervous and excited they look. This time it was my turn to give a talk on obedience and I had to mention the white handbook and cell phones and iPods. I prepared during personal study this morning, but as I sat there on the stand, something just didn’t feel right. So, I offered a silent prayer and decided to abandon what I had prepared and just get up and talk with no notes, no papers, no nothing. It was great…scary at first, but great. I ended up talking about something I learned from mom and something I learned from dad. From mom it was "a friend is someone that makes you your best self."…the white rule book is our best friend because it helps us to become our best selves. My dad taught me through baseball how to be able to pick his whistle out of a crowd and follow its instruction. I then related that to the Holy Ghost and how our Father in Heaven whistles to us sometimes and we must be ready to heed the instructions. I mentioned that when I went to play baseball, I left things in the dugout like my phone and iPod and they should do the same. It was a great experience for me, not because my talk was great, but because it built my testimony of the importance of preparation…I prepared and then the Holy Ghost gave it to me in the moment that which I should say. Just another chance to grow :)
Santa Monica is still there…We hadn’t been there in so long that I was starting to wonder if it really existed anymore, but I am pleased to report that it is still there and has not sunk into the ocean…yet. Today was just a great day. The weather in Santa Monica cannot be beat…It was 70 and sunny with a slight breeze and for the first part of the day we were right on ocean by the overlook of the beach. Talk about beautiful. We had a lesson with a woman from the ward who is on the 5-5-5 plan and it went really well. Her name is Sister J., and we aren’t totally sure, but judging by some of the responses she gave us, we think she is on the semi- active side. It was the first real lesson that Elder M. and I were able to teach really and it was fantastic. Now the location was another story.
We couldn’t find a male to come with us, so we had the lesson on a bench at this overlook of Santa Monica beach. The problem is that it was hot and right next to a running path. Can you say spandex!? Ah, the entire town is crawling with women in barely any clothing and the stuff they do have on is spandex on top of spandex on top of spandex. It is a nightmare. So sad that Heavenly Father's children choose to dress so immodestly. So while we are teaching about the restoration of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, Satan ran by on multiple occasions. What a great way to practice staying focused and self-control haha.
The members of this ward are so loving and non-judgmental and caring and it is a real example to me. Today after church we had the usual outstanding correlation meeting and then we had an appointment with Mr. H., a guy who was a referral from the bishop of a guy that came to church looking for help. Well, he might be getting more help than he bargained for, but he needs it whether he knows it or not. He told us his story which is quite tragic to say the least. He worked in the music industry with a lot of big names and then his wife got cancer and they had no health insurance and had to sell their home in order to pay the medical bills to keep her alive. She died and then they were left with nothing. He and his daughter were driving their car…pretty much the only thing they had, and they crashed because his heart failed and they went off a 100 foot ravine. She was in critical condition and he screwed up his knee pretty bad but he refused to be treated because they said he might lose his daughter…She lived, but his knee is permanently jacked and she went to college and to help pay, he sold everything and was homeless for 2 months and now he has a tiny apartment but came to the bishop for help. Talk about a roller coaster of a life. He just sees it as part of life, but that is quite the story don’t you think?
Anyway, we met and talked with him about life and what he wants and he said that he doesn’t have a lot of time right now but he has a lot of questions and wants to "know why and how there is a light around us and in our eyes and smile." I think he is really good. He is a son of God who needs the gospel and we are going to give it to him.
The largest miracle on my mission that I have seen is the hand of the Lord working changes in me to become more the priesthood holder and son that He needs me to be. These past 20 months have been such a blessing to me. The church has a great system of sending the youth through the spiritual boot camp that the mission is.
I have learned so many lessons on my mission, but one that comes to mind is lifting where I stand and being willing to stand wherever the Lord asks me to stand. That means whether He wants me to be an assistant or whether I have been called to work landscape at the temple, I will lift the best I can from wherever I am. I try to be the best assistant I can be, or the best grounds keeper I can be and, to the Lord, both efforts are equal. We must all be humble enough to accept the fact that we cannot lift from where someone else is standing, only from where our two feet are planted. With the Help of the Lord, we can lift more than we could ever lift alone because with Christ we enter into a perfect companionship. It's like in the movie "Remember the Titans" when Julius says that he is not perfect, but the team is perfect and he wants to keep it that way. It is up to us to invite the Savior into our lives in such a way that our companionship with Him can be perfect. It is about having both feet into the gospel, doing it half-heartedly won't cut it...all or nothing.
Love you guys! Thanks for putting up with me for 21 years now! Crazy I am that old, huh? :)
Love,
Elder Molinaro
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