Ok so having a trio with companions from Peru, Brasil, and
the US is crazy because we are always talking about our cultures and what types
of foods we eat, and what holidays we celebrate and it's THE CRAZIEST THING --
Peru is WAY MORE SIMILAR to the US than Brasil.
There are clearly a ton of differences but the one thing
that absolutely blows my mind is that in Peru, no one has any idea of what a
hammock is. Like they just straight up don't exist there - which becomes a
slight problem when Sister Vasquez has found that she is physically UNABLE to
sleep at night with any other type of bed and she has 4 weeks left before going
home to Peru.
#so.mom.itslikefabric..between.two.hooks..that..yousleepin...
#oopa
This week I really gave my all to talk to every person that
I could on the street, which really lead to some amazing experiences (AND our
trio having the most contacts of the whole mission #nbd #whoopwhoop)
But the
most tender of mercies came with this guy named Neto.
So we were walking on the street and we had already passed a
good number of people and I see this young 22ish yr old guy walking towards us
and I feel the need to talk to him. But I spend too much time thinking about it
and by the time I go to open my mouth, he's already behind us. Turning around,
I call out to him to make a contact which turns into one of the most interesting
conversations.
Apparently, he's living alone here in Natal and was studying
at college up in the north but kind of lost sight of who he was, dropped
everything - all contact, cellphone, TUDO and was like how can I serve a
mission like you guys? But I don't think he was getting the whole a “mission-isn't-tourism-where-you-go-to-any-country-you-want
type of thing” and wasn't really expressing much potential, but I still felt
prompted to ask if we could pass by his apartment that very day to share a
message about Christ.
Us - "will you be at home?'
him - "I don't know.'
us - "..righttt okay. do you have a number we can
call?'
him - 'no. I don't have a phone.'
us - '.rightttt okay we will pass by at 3:30 okay?'
him - '..okay..'
And my companions are just like what are you doing, this guy
is clearly not interested. But I still left thinking about this guy and was a
little perplexed the whole day.
Then we had a few other lessons and left for a different
neighborhood and we were about an HOUR LATE to visit him. But after letting us
in, the guy at the condominio said that Neto had been expecting us for quite
some time but that he wasn't answering his phone in the apartment. Undeterred,
we entered to knock on his door.. only to be greeted by echoes.
ahhh que droga right? We search around the inside of the
condominio but don’t see him anywhere and my companion just goes, no I have
this feeling that he's here. And runs around to a different window and shouts
in, calling his name - to which he FINALLY appears and we are able to enter and
teach him.
We taught about the prophets in the bible and how God has
always called prophets to help guide his people, and go on to talk about Joseph
Smith, how he was called to be a prophet and how the Book of Mormon came to
light, and we left a chapter for him to read with the invite to ask God if it
was really all true or not like we always do.
But in my mind, I was still doubting whether this guy was
really interested or if he was just waiting for us to leave the whole
time.
FAST FORWARD to the next day and we pass by to see if he's
read it or not, only to find that he hasn't read the part we had left about
when Christ appeared to the people in the Americas.
Instead.. he's read the entire first 7 chapters of the first
book of Nefi.
And was still reading when we got there.
Completely absorbed and intrigued with Nefi and his brothers
and their little family, the faith they had, and the trust they had in the
Lord.
We asked him how he felt when he was reading and he turned to
us with this really profound comparison of faith and trust.
He said that faith was when we simply believe something because
other people say that it's true, that we rely on the belief that THEY have. (a
little different I'll admit)
But trust is when we feel the truth of something because WE
feel it deep within ourselves. That it has become a part of us and because of
this - it's stronger and more resilient.
He then goes on to say that
'I don't have faith.
I trust.'
I was just so touched.
He has TRUST that the Book of Mormon is true and that Joseph
Smith was a prophet.
And because of this trust - he has come to know.
AND THEN HE CAME TO CHURCH WITH US AND IT WAS THE GREATEST
THING.
But he also has a million deep questions so let's see just
how this goes, but really feeling blessed with how the Lord works in our lives
and how important it is that we are always showing him how willing we are to be
His hands.
Like this guy at church said on Sunday
"We aren't earthly beings having a heavenly
experience, we are spiritual beings having an earthly
experience"
So embora folks - always remember who you are and your
divine potential.
TRUST that God has a plan for you, and not only TRUST - but
use Him to help you know what it is.
LOVE YOU ALL<3
Sister Staheli
