Celebrating And Persevering

Well, this has been a harder week for me. Not everything works out as I want it to, and I had to accept this truth. I'm seeing that the Lord is humbling me and making sure I'm still dedicated when things get rough.

The good news is that I'm committed to staying dedicated—and positive! Staying optimistic makes all the difference in a companionship.

Things were hard because three or four important lessons got canceled this week. When this happens, we remain prayerful and seek to find others to teach.

Wednesday was my birthday, so I got to celebrate a little bit. The nice thing about mission birthdays is that they go better when I'm serving others. It's nice and all to get presents, but thanking my Heavenly Father for twenty-one years of life by serving His children is the best way to make the most of my birthday. I am eternally grateful for my Savior who makes my joy possible. I'm also grateful for all the missionaries here in Auburn who were kind enough to wish me a happy birthday!

I have been having some stellar and fast-moving weeks while I've been in Auburn, so a slower week was needed. This sounds weird at first, but it's true. It's brought me to my knees and allowed me to be grateful for repentance. I get to try and try again; what a beautiful thing the Atonement is. I also have been able to express patience and love for our friends since they have agency. I thank God for this tough week that I went through. It was worth it because I relied on my Savior to help me through it. Without challenges, I wouldn't receive nearly as much growth to my testimony. I can truly say that my testimony of Jesus Christ grew more this week. I am actually in tears as I write this because it is the most joyful thing I am learning. It is sacred to me. I am learning to overcome pride and humble myself before God. I can only do my missionary work if the Lord is involved. THIS is what I know.

Studying about the Savior really brings me the Holy Ghost. I watched some of the Life of Jesus Christ videos in Gospel Library, and they are incredible! I feel His presence as I remember Him and take His name upon me. Doing the things in the sacrament prayers—keeping our baptismal covenants—truly renews us. Another thing I do is visualize sitting next to the Savior. I do this as I go to bed, and it has been a neat way to end my day. I imagine talking about my efforts that day and speaking openly about all my feelings and desires. I also imagine Christ responding with perfect empathy and understanding. It is a powerful thing that often brings me to tears.

In terms of our friends, José got covid! We are so sad about this, but we are praying that he recovers. We won't be able to meet with him for a bit as a result.

Raúl came to church! We hope to talk with him on Wednesday.

Our lesson with Hugo canceled, so we look forward to visiting them with our member again.

Reynolds is alright. He didn't answer any of our four texts or keep any of our extended commitments, but he claims he'll do them this week. We expressed disappointment, but boldly invited him to read and pray about the Book of Mormon. We studied 3 Nephi 11:10-17 and watched the Book of Mormon for it! I got to testify of the Holy Ghost that we felt and that he can have that same presence if he makes time for the Lord.

We played volleyball with Christopher on Thursday! We read some more of the introduction to the Book of Mormon, and I think I liked it. He wasn't serious about coming to church, but we're working on that. On Saturday, he brought a new friend to our bigger volleyball night! He clearly feels comfortable bringing friends to an event put on by missionaries. So cool!

We got to do some service for our members—finally!! Service is rare for Spanish missionaries, so this was a privilege.

I am optimistic about our friends and know that things always turn out okay. It takes faith. Another word for this is trust.

Padre Celestial me bendice en tantas maneras. Estoy aprendiendo a ser un discípulo humilde mientras entrano a Elder Townsend. Sé que solamente tengo el Espíritu Santo cuando obedezco Dios. ¡Vale la pena! Ojalá que ustedes se sientan lo mismo. Cristo es mi Salvador personal; yo aprendí esto un poco más esta semana. Una de mis escrituras favoritas que mi abuelo me compartió hace años es Mosiah 2:41. La uso constantemente para enseñar a mis amigos. ¡Es fantástico en saber que guardar los mandamientos nos trae gozo profundo! Les invito a estudiar esta escritura.

Este es todo. ¡Un correo más largo esta vez!

Bueno, ¡hasta luego!

Elder Jones