Sunday, October 1, 2017

September 18, 2017 ~ Transfer 10 Week 2

Hi all!

This week was quite normal. It had some ups and some downs and some more ups haha. I'll explain what I think was interesting this week and the blessings we recieved:

so for a while we've been searching for the means to ask for permission to do an activity in a plaza here showing the movie "Meet the Mormons". We've had quite the trouble finding where to ask permission because the government buildings here (there's like 10) kept pointing us over to different buildings. We first walked into the city's Seminary (basically a religious school ran by the government I think) and asked there, I felt super stupid going into there because I knew I was wrong haha, but we had no clue where to go after walking into so many buildings haha. Thankfully they sent us to the right building where we asked for a form. After being bounced around within the office we got a form to fill out to ask for permission and it's all in Galego!!! So we understand parts of it but not all of it. Basically get yet another loop we have to jump through if we really want to do this activity...(Thankfully a member translated the form for me at the branch activity that night). Super complicated.

We were definately guided this week. If I was supposed to learn that this week, I did. For example, we had some time and all our plans and backup plans fell through. We weren't sure what to do so we sat down and prayed. And a thought came to mind that we could pass by a certain future investagator. So we did. And he was home! And we hadn't been able to meet with him and we tried quite a few times. He let us pass by and we talked for a little bit and set up another visit. Then another name came to mind and we visited him and he also was home! And we got a phone number so that we don't have to go all the way out to his house to talk to him (because it is far).

More blessings from Saturday: "Heavenly Father works miracles. I'm amazed at how well He has placed people in our path today and how guided we were. Literally, this morning we went to our recent convert's home, taught him a quick lesson (really he taught us...he has so much faith and never complains). And a quick story from the recent convert...basically a member bought eggs from him for 3€. She told him to give it as a fast offering and to try his faith. He thought, "well it's only 3€, I don't have anything else but I'll try it out". His chickens were putting out between 6-8 eggs a day. Now they are putting out 12 eggs. Double. And because of his faith to pay what he had to offer, no matter how little, he has been blessed tremendously. If he weren't been blessed on the farm he wouldn't still be there, he wouldn't survive. But he's making it by. He's learning a ton. He's sharing the gospel with others. He shared the gospel with a señorita by inviting her to church and she's coming tomorrow! Super cool, a really sweet old lady we met today."

"...Then as part of this miracle we got home and followed the schedule exactly to a "T" as with timing for getting back and doing studies. I had the thought to bring a note that a sister missionary wrote to an inactive member from a while ago. I debated bringing it and I brought it in the end. Then we left and we went to their home to see if he was there. He wasn't, nor the wife. And the front door of his building was left open so I was like "do we go up to the door, do we not..." We rang, nobody answered and so we entered (and found out that the front door doesn't close.) Knocked on the actual door, no answer. So we left the note from the sister missionary in the door. Okay, so that worked out well. We then started talking with people within the wall. We get a hold of Octavio and he tells us he will meet us at the plaza de Santo Domingo. We start walking and Jose fails tonight. But as I was talking on the phone I saw a man with a bicycle sitting on a bench. The thought came to mind "go talk to him". And I walked away because I was on the phone. We crossed the street and I felt an unsettling feeling so we went back. The man was still there. What a miracle because they usually leave. But we went up to him and started talking to him about cycling (my companion loves biking). And we talked for 30mins at least. Well the man talked most the time. We gave him a pamphlet of the plan of salvation because he was talking a ton about his family and he was born on the same street we found him on. He was telling us all kinds of stories. We tried so hard to set up a lesson and to get his number but he wouldn't give it to us hahaha. It was so frustrating. Right after that we searched for Octavio. We didn't find him but we found a band of people playing bag pipes. We watched while waiting for Octavio. And then we left, took a wrong turn outside of the wall and we ran into Ester! Literally she hopped off us the bus on the opposite side of the street right when we were passing. It was great hahaha. Then we talked a bit with the people in the street ( and we found the plan of salvation pamphlet in the street that fell out of the cyclist's pocket while riding his bike). Then we went to the church to see if all the songs were programmed in the electric piano for sacrament meeting tomorrow. They were thankfully. We quickly called all the investagators and recent converts to see if they will be coming tomorrow. We walked out of the church and within 1 min Jose (investagator) saw us while he was driving, he picked us up and drove us home. The timing on everything today was amazing. I don't know what it was but I think the Lord was showing me that He really is in charge and that if we pray with enough faith He can really put the people in our path."

Hilarious moments:
When walking in the street one day a little kid came up to us and asked if we were from the "FBI". It was quite funny. His mom just kind of laughed at him as he did it haha

The other moment that made my week...on Sunday mornings, walking to church is always interesting. We have to pass through the Roman wall in the middle of the city and there are always drunk people who are so drunk they never made it home. So we never really know what it expect because usually someone says nasty things at us for being missionaries but they are too drunk to do more than say a couple mean things. But yesterday here is how one conversation went:
Se are walking down this small road and we see two girls, one dragging the other by the hand.
The girl being dragged: ¿qué vendéis, chicos? = what are you guys selling?
Me: nada = nothing / we aren't selling anything
The girl: oh, es que yo quería comprarlo. Soy consumista. =oh, because I wanted to buy what you are selling. I'm a consumer.

In English, not quite as funny but you get the point. My companion and I were dying. The great thing is we don't sell anything. We gift it. The gospel is free and we actually get back more in blessings than what we put in. 

And some quick words from Helaman 12:1: "...the Lord in his great infinite goodness doth bless and prosper those who put their trust in him."

Trust in the Lord and He can help us and bless us so much more than if we try to do everything on our own.


Have a wonderful week!

Today we took some random pictures around Lugo and this is what we got...
1)a Roman horse statue that I tested my weight on hahaha
2)a Roman soldier (missing)
3)the Roman wall

Elder Openshaw

Spain Madrid Mission
Calle Fuerteventura 4, 2, Oficina 8B
28703 San Sebastián de los Reyes
Madrid, España



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