Alright well this week is going to be really different! We only worked one day this week and so as far as the work goes in our area it was kind of held to a stop! This week was pretty crazy as far as everything goes in the offices! And this week coming up isn't going to be much better! I am glad to announce that I am going to be a dad again! Elder Olson and I are giving birth on Saturday to Elder and Sister Nebeker! We are pretty excited to meet and work close with them! They will also be assigned in our ward which will be awesome for the work we will have! They will be dedicated to the offices but will attend our ward and our meetings and we will take them to eat and everything occasionally! We are really excited to see how it goes! So that will be Saturday going to pick up our kids!
Alright so Monday we went and played soccer with our youth again! It is great for our exercise I feel skinnier every time we play! It just makes me feel super out of shape though! Because I totally am! My skills are getting pretty average though! I am going to be able to give Jordan a run for his money when I get home! The only problem is Olson is too good so I don't like to play with him or with any of the youth because they are also too good but me with like the unathletic kids thats when I do good!! Then we just ate hot dogs and had a good day!
Tuesday was a day that we were going to go and work but then we had some problems here in the offices and so we went to the food and came back! We had to make a bunch of payments to make sure things would all turn out good! So that is what we did then after Elder Ibarra and Elder Murray got home with stuff from three houses so we were helping them get that all organized and unpacked and start to get work done! and now our house is full as full gets and we have the task of getting all of that put away here before the senior couple gets here.
Wednesday we went and started cleaning out houses out in Paraiso! So this was a full day process we were pretty tired! I also don't know why but all of these houses and I swear they were all on the fifth floor and they all had four matresses in them! So we were pretty tired with all that and everything that is going on! However in the morning we went and had an awesome capacitation on teaching repentance and batizing converts! It was awesome! It was led by Elder Nielson the seventy that came to our mission and so we had kind of already heard a lot of it but it was still amazing!! He talked about how to work with less actives to have success and that what we teach is for people to repent and be baptized obviously! But it was awesome! I was able to learn a lot! So that was our whole day!
Thursday the same we went and started to get houses cleaned out! We went far away this time! All the way out to Texcoco! It was an exhausting day but it felt nice to finally finish and just get everything over with! However things got a little out of hand by the time we got home! I wish I would have taken a picture to show you how full of stuff we are!! We literally have zero room for anything anymore!!
Friday was a polanco trip! So we headed out in the morning like always to get all the stuff done that we needed to! We dropped our papers off and we found the Secretaries from the East Mission who are our homies and so we just hung out with them and it was fun! It was nice to talk and catch up with them and just talk about life!! It was a good time! This is one of the few missions and secretaries that like us down here so whenever we see them we always chat and they are great!
Saturday was finally a day we could work so we left and were stoked to get out and start going at it! The only problem is everything fell on us! We ended up going with two less actives and found a new that is as chosen as it gets! The problem is he lives in Tijuana. We are really good at finding people the only problem is very rarely do they live in our area right now! It is kind of frustrating but it has to be for a reason! Right? So basically after that we went home because the food made us both really really sick! I knew it was going to be a problem when we were sitting at the food and one of the sisters says, ¨Mom I don't want to eat the main plate last time it made me really sick¨.... Needless to say we got really really sick!
Sunday we didn't go to church until Sacrament since that was last! We spent the morning pooping our guts out! I would have puked but I had zero food in me so that was good! So we just went to take the sacrament and then we were going to head back! And well one of the cooler things from my mission happened and I will use what Elder Olson wrote in this part
A few months ago, my companion Elder Orchard and I were looking through the ward lists for less-active members to visit. We found a name that had 2 members, and an 18 year old daughter that hadn't been baptized. They lived on the same street as some investigators we were teaching so we decided to drop by on the way to a lesson with them. When we got to the door, they said "Oh it's the missionaries.." through the window but they decided to open the door. An older gentleman came out and greeted us, and we began to contact him. As we talked, he told us that he had been inactive for the better part of 13 years, and had no desire to return to the church. Elder Nielson had recently visited our mission, and told us that we should try asking the members if we could practice the lessons with them. So, that's what we did! We asked the brother if we could practice teaching the lessons with him, and he accepted. We put a date to go back one morning, and then went to teach another family.
Finally the day came to go back and visit them. We went back, and started by getting to know them a little bit better. Turns out, the father had been a Stake Counselor, Ex-Missionary, and had worked in the church school Benemerito. His wife had been an Ex-Relief Society President, and had held several other callings in the church. They quit going because they felt like their callings were consuming their lives, and they didn't have enough time for their families. Over time their testimonies that once had been very strong, started to weaken. We invited them to pray, and they accepted but weren't willing to personally offer it. My companion and I would say them to start and finish the lessons. They would answer our questions honestly, but never really wanted to open up. As we got to know them more, we realized one of their best friends in the ward was the bishop! They started to ask about their family and how they were doing, and we were able to schedule a family night with the bishop and his family.
We kept teaching them for several months, and it felt like we were making no progress. We thought we were feeling the Spirit strongly in the lessons, and that we were seeing a change in their lives, but they still couldn't find the desire to return to the church. Last Sunday, I woke up super sick. We have Sacrament meeting last, and we planned on just going to take the sacrament and see who went of our investigators. We showed up a little late, and hurried and sat in the back. We were just listening to the messages, and we saw a family we didn't know. We texted the first counselor to ask who they were, and he sent us back a message that we never expected. "The Camacho family. They showed up today by themselves."
The feelings that my companion and I experienced this day were amazing. It is something I will never forget.
I just wanted to cry I felt so happy! They are so great and they can really really help our ward!
Alright well this weeks spiritual thought comes from a chapter I was reading in the bible! I really loved it and what it says! It is found in 1st John chapter 3 Verses 16-18
16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laiddown his life for us: and we ought to lay
down our lives for the brethren.
17 But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.
This is something I love! It says that God Loves us and we know he loves us from his actions! And then I love what is says in 18 that we should do the same! I was reading Preach my Gospel and it said that we should teach by example and loving! I loved what I could learn from this!
I love you guys! Have a great week!
love
Elder Orchard
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