Thanksgiving. Not a thing in Spain, but we as a zone have decided to celebrate it. We are getting together tomorrow to have a big meal and eat as much as we can. But really, we do have so much to be grateful for in our lives. We get to be in SPAIN. And in Alicante of all places. It is amazing here.
This last week was great, but it was also difficult in the sense that we lost one of our really good investigators. Antonio, with whom we had a baptismal date, doesn't live in our area or in our ward boundaries, so we gave him to the Elders of the other ward. Tekki, who was going to be baptized last week, was unable to because of problems with her parents. Her baptism has been postponed indefinitely. Which is tough, but I know that after the trials come the blessings. Because this week we set two new baptismal dates with two incredibly prepared investigators, Rosa and Henry. They are AWESOME!!!! Rosa is the daughter of a recent convert named Mina. She, at the beginning of our time teaching them, stuck to the back of the lesson, and generally didn't participate. But now, when we decided to try and start to work with her specifically, she really has turned into a golden investigator. We are so lucky to have her, because she has Mina supporting her, and has a lot of faith. She is from Bulgaria, and has a lot of desires to do what is right. I can't wait to see how she progresses.
Henry is a reference from a member and is the single most prepared person for baptism on the face of the earth. We started talking to him, and he has already been coming to institute at the church for a while now, and loves coming to church. He told us that there, he can feel peace. He also said he loved how no one compels him to be at the chapel, but he feels like he should go. He is awesome. He committed to baptism in the first lesson, and we are definitely going to see miracles with him.
Our mission this last week had the privilege of hearing from Elder Kearon, one of the seventy. While he was here, he talked a lot about how we need to be taking advantage of our lives. How we need to utilize every moment of our missions because we have so little time. And it is so true! How many times a day do we just sit and let moments pass us by? We could be out working miracles in the lives of others, but sometimes we choose to do the easy thing and let opportunities pass us by. We need to 'CARPE DIEM' or 'Seize the Day'. Every day, we need to decide for ourselves that we are going to make this day an effective day, that we are going to take advantage of every moment so that we can progress. Time is so valuable, in fact, I think it is the most valuable resource that we waste. What we need to do is DO! Do something, don't hesitate because you feel too tired or you'll just do it later. If you don't do it now, you never will. I needed that. I know that too often I have let too many moments pass by without utilizing them to the best of my ability. That's also not to say that we need to be going 100 percent all of the time. We need breaks. We need to take a step back and make sure that we aren't burning out. I guess my point is is that we need to be the best we can be. That's what the Gospel is all about. being the best we can be through Christ. And I know that's what he wants for us. He wants us to become perfect, and we can show that we are willing to follow him by trying everyday. While Elder Kearon was here, I had the opportunity to be chosen to have an interview with him. He is an incredible person. When I am older, I want to have that sort of presence. He is really, an incredible person. I learned a lot from him as well. He taught me the importance of how we start our days. If we surrender the morning to the snooze button, we have already lost our first battle of the day. Paraphrase, but that's what one of his key messages was. It was a very amazing experience, and I feel very blessed to have been a part of it.
I love this Gospel. It is one of the things in my life that can ALWAYS bring me happiness. I cannot even describe to you how much I have been able to learn from this opportunity. I have grown to love the scriptures. They are such a source of power, and combined with prayer, they can and will carry us through trials. God knows us. He knows us individually and knows our infinite worth and divine potential. At times, it may not seem that way. It may seem that we have not worth, and that basically, we are stunted in our progress. But I know that He sees us in a way that we cannot. He sees us for what we can be, the finished product, and that is why he will NEVER give up on us, even when we do.
I love you all so much! Thank you for all of your love, support and prayers. I cannot describe how grateful I am for this experience. It is one that has and will continue to change my life. Anyone who is considering a mission, it is amazing. I would suggest it to anyone who has the desire because it will make you a better person and will make you come closer to our Savior.
IT'S A GREAT DAY TO BE A MISSIONARY!
Elder Weenig
| There is somewhat of an fantastic story behind this picture. This is President and Hermana Deere, and the rest of my travel group from the MTC. Funny story. Getting here, we all took a picture at the airport. We were all really happy about it until we noticed one thing: every single one of our cameras had taken a blurry picture. We were all pretty sad, but fortunately, when we all went in to Fuengirola to get Spanish residency, it was President Deere's birthday. We all went out to Subway, and decided to take advantage of the situation and re enact our coming into the airport. The background looks nothing like an airport. And that would be correct. We are in a mall, standing in front of a screen that has a soccer game going on. But hey. We got the picture :) |
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