This week....

...feels like it has lasted a million years. Sometimes that happens on missions.

SO, Roberto, the greatest investigator this valley has ever known, entered the waters of baptism yesterday!! His family came (30 min late) but we made everyone wait so they could be there. SURE ENOUGH it all ended beautifully. Afterwards we gave his family a tour of the church (aka walked them down the hall to the chapel) and talked in there and invited them to learn more.

We have a lesson with all of them at 6:30 tonight. Pray with me that it will go well. From what we saw yesterday, his sister is really interested. And his parents were really receptive. OJALA QUE SI.

The elders in our district had made fun of us for always talking about Roberto as if he were a 5 week old baby instead of a 25 year old man. Last correlation meeting they asked how our last lesson with him went, so we started to rave, having taught him right before the meeting.
Me: "It went great; HE IS SO PRECIOUS!!!'
Hna Evans: "He chose the cutest scriptures for his baptismal program!!""
Because of transfers, we had some elders who were new to the district and therefore knew nothing of Roberto's tender heart.
Elder Taylor (sarcastic): I'm sure he's adorable, hermanas.
3 DAYS LATER:
Sure enough,  Elder Taylor was blown away with Roberto all through church. After the baptism, he came up repenting of the error of his ways.
"Hermanas, not gonna lie, Roberto is sick. He's so dope."
Me, gloating: "Oh, is he cute, Elder Taylor?"
Him, humbled: "Yeah... He's pretty cute."

He wrote his testimony at request of Hna Rodriguez; this should probably make you cry



SOMETHING I DID NOT EXPECT before serving a mission, is that without moms or google to diagnose your symptoms, I pretty much get a play by play of all my companions' bodily functions.
This week, as we drove away from a meeting, I dialed up an Hno in the ward. The phone is ringing.
Hna Evans: I think I have gas. I have this sharp pain right here on my left side.
Hno Rosas picks up the phone RIGHT as I say,
"Either it's gas, or--- OH HIIIIII HERMANO........"
HAHAHAHHAHAHA WE DIED.

Other things that happened this week included defeating a small army of ants marching one by one into our bedroom, attending a mission wide conference with a member of the 70, and eating at Bob's Big Boy Burgers when the Hermana that wanted to take us out to eat to this organic health food store realized she didn't actually like organic health food.

FAVORITE THING I READ THIS WEEK was a quote in Hno Sabino's scriptures.
We had an incident a few months ago with some members in Arleta that initially I just rolled off, but began to trouble me after a while. Not so much them or their behavior but the idea that "Can you make it in to the celestial kingdom if your covenants are in tact but if your heart is not Christlike?" This quote gave me a lot of peace.

"Service is not something we endure on this earth so we can earn the right to live in the celestial kingdom. Service is the very fiber of which an exalted life is made. Knowing that service is what gives our Father in Heaven fulfillment, and knowing that we want to be where He is and as He is, why then must we be commanded to serve one another?"
- Marion G. Romney, Ensign 1982 Nov. p.9

This email has been pretty scattered but I don't have time for anything else!!

P.S. Elder Oaks is coming to our stake conference on May 4! Who knew he spoke Spanish!

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Lauren / Hna Simpson / the one with the short hair