I Speak Spanish!

Dear everyone,

 

This week was one of miracles.  I hope you never get tired of hearing that word because I never get tired of saying it.  I love this work!  I LOVE IT!  Okay, okay, but now we're gonna get to what the best part of this week was.  Remember Honorio, right?  Well, when we met him, he wasn't too fond of the idea of getting married.  This was because his previous two divorces had kind of embittered him toward the sanction.  After learning about this gospel, he wanted to get baptized.  But to do so, he had to get married.  Why?  Because living with his Señora and not being married is against God's commandments.  

So after a few meetings, last week he told us that he was planning to get married!  That was a miracle in and of itself.  But Elder Sevilla and I know all too well that the Lord does not want Honorio to wait four whole months to get married, living with Ana.  Elder Sevilla and I also knew that we would just have once chance, one opportunity to try to help him come to the conclusion to get married sooner.  We must have spent four entire companionship studies just practicing and role-playing, letinng the Spirit guide us and help us plan for what we would say to Honorio.  After all, we didn't want Honorio to think that all we wanted was to get him baptized and push him into something to quickly.  That's not the truth, either.  What we want is for him to receive all the blessings that God can offer him.  So we went into the meeting, still not knowing exactly what we would say, but had some scriptures prepared and knew that Heavenly Father would direct us.  We had faith.  It was sufficient. 

 

The meeting went spectactularly.  There is a certain way the ideal meeting goes while a missionary is teaching.  It involves the Holy Ghost working in both the teaching process, inspiring the missionaries with the words to say, and the learning process, inspiring the investigators with the words to say and also testifying that what the missionaries are saying is true.  This meeting went so perfectly, that it was almost like something out of a story.  Every question that we asked, every word that we said, was inspired by the Spirit.  And every reply that Honorio gave was amazing.  He was so humble, so willing to accept the will of the Lord.  

"Honorio," I said, "the Lord loves you because you are His son.  You are literally His son.  That is why he sent us, the missionaries, to your door.  He knew that you would be ready to receive His Restored Gospel now.  In order to receive all of the blessings that God can offer you in this life and the next, and in order to live with God again, you must be baptized.  In order to be baptized, you must get married.  You have plans for July, but the we have been praying.  

The Lord has let us know that He wants you in his church as soon as possible so he can use your abilities and talents to build up his kingdom.  So we have an invitation for you:  if you will pray and ask God if He wants you to make plans to get married so you can be baptized as soon as possible." 

Without much hesitation, Honorio said "I think we can plan for April."  WHAT.  THAT IS THE BEST NEWS I HAVE EVER HEARD.  So now we are planning for his baptism in April.  He talked to Ana and she wants to get married sooner, too.  This amazing miracle...  wow... after that lesson, you wouldn't even be able to begin--to begin--to describe how amazing we felt.  We were so grateful, so amazingly grateful and happy we were.  I thank the Lord profusely that I am His missionary.

 

We have been teaching other people, but the work is still difficult in San Carlos.  Finding people who will progress and commit to follow all of the commandments is not an easy task.  But we are working so hard.  We are exactly obedient.  I know that we are doing our part and fulfilling the will of God.  

That's the job of a missionary: to fulfill the will of God; submit his will to that of the Lord's and pur all trust in Him.  That is what I am doing.  I know without a doubt that this is God's true church.  That the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true church of God Restored by His own hand through the prophet Josepth Smith.  The Book of Mormón is evidence of this.  Anybody who reads it and asks God if it is true with the heart willing to submit himself or herself to the will of God will receive an answer and this answer will bring them inexplicable joy.  What a blessing this is, to be a missionary.

 

Anouncement:  I can now send emails and receive emails from anyone.  But just to make sure, send the emails to my email address daniel.plautz@myldsmail.net and to the mission email urumontemission@gmail.net so they can print it out and I can have a hard copy, too.  Thank you all for your prayers.  I love you all and I love this work.  It is the most important work, there is.  I must now go and serve the beloved children of God.

 

LOVE,

Elder Plautz

 

P.S.  I have more pictures!

 

The first is from today; the Elders in my zone and I played soccer (this was the first time I had played soccer since the CCM, and I was abominable) and we were all together!  So we took a picture.  

The second is me eating Azado, a Uruguayo way of preparing a part of the cow.  It is the hardest thing EVER to eat because the meat is infused with fat.  Please don't judge me for eating fat. 

The third is me in the CCM with Elder Rydalch, being fly.  Elder Rydalch was the other district leader in the CCM with the other district of North Americans.