Monday, July 21, 2008

Book of Mormon Challenge, & Ties by the lb.

Dear Family:
Thanks so much for the rain coat! I got one and I'll probably get the other today or tomorrow. This week has been really warm, but they have been stressing that we stay prepared for hurricanes, and it sounds like there might be one coming tomorrow (Hurricane Dolly).
This week was pretty good. On Thursday we had Zone Conference. We are studying chapter 5 from Preach My Gospel (PMG) about the Book of Mormon. We watched this really cool historical documentary that a bunch of church scholars put out about the route that Lehi and his family probably took when they departed Jerusalem. It really made the Book of Mormon come more alive! I really love how the Bible and the Book of Mormon work together and how they both testify of Jesus Christ. Our Mission President challenged us to take a fresh copy and read all the way through and highlight every reference to Jesus Christ, His Attributes, and His words (either when he is speaking personally or when the prophets say "thus saith the lord..."). I am really excited to take the challenge and re-read it again ( I had just barely finished) and I want to encourage everyone who is reading this to do the same! I really love how the Bible paints a a great picture of what kind of person Jesus Christ is and my testimony of Him and His sacrifice is enhanced when I read the Book of Mormon.
On Friday we went over to a member's house because the girl we just baptized was having her 20th birthday and she invited us over. So we went and we had cake and lots of food!
On Saturday, we went over to this one guy's house who we had talked to, and he invited us to sit down with him. Turns out he was totally drunk and was just rambling on about random stuff. A bunch of mosquitos were attacking us, so Elder Gish went to spray some bug spray, and nailed the guy right in the eyes!
Yesterday was great! I got to confirm our new convert, and I did it In Spanish! It was the first time I've ever confirmed someone. She is now offically a member!
This morning the Zone leaders picked us up and we went "tie digging" in this huge warehouse downtown. They have these huge bales of ties that you dig through and they charge you $1 for every pound of ties that you have, so you can get a lot for really cheap. Plus, there are usually some really good ones. I came away with 5 pounds! Everything is going great here. Just keep us in your prayers!
Love,
Ryan