Trio Surprise!

Wow. This week was loaded with some exciting things.

We worked hard to get Fernando ready for baptism. He was able to call and meet in person almost every day!

I had a great exchange with an elder named Elder Critchfield. He's goofy. I learned some good things from him. The first person we met at this trailer park was cool! He spoke mostly Spanish, but a little English too. He unloaded with questions as we taught him the Book of Mormon. We helped him understand a lot. It was neat that Elder Critchfield got to teach him too! We look forward to teaching him again!

We had our lesson with our three Honduran friends, and it went super well. I was still with Elder Critchfield for this, so I taught by myself. However, I did ask him for some comments that I could then translate into Spanish. Fabiola, Jorge, and Maria had forgotten a lot about the Plan of Salvation, so I re-taught it to them. Heavenly Father sure helped me because my Spanish flowed really well and the Holy Ghost was there! We all felt it as I explained how Christ is at the center of the Plan. Although they didn't come to church, they've been reading a little bit in the Book of Mormon!

We have been teaching English to two friends named Jonatan and Karla. They are doing so well! We taught them about the church and the Book of Mormon, and they think it's truly wonderful. We invited them to church, and they came!! They liked it. We are waiting to meet with them again and hear their prayers about the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and the church!

Now I'll tell you about the title. WE GOT A THIRD SPANISH ELDER IN OUR COMPANIONSHIP!!! We are a trio now! There were some changes with other Spanish elders in our mission, and now we got him. This elder is named Elder Bloomfield. He's awesome. An elder I trained, Elder Miller, trained Elder Bloomfield. Therefore, he is considered my mission "grandson". He is super fun and hardworking! The three of us already get along super well!

On Friday, we were public contacting. While Elder Bloomfield and I talked to a kind Latino lady, Elder Thompson was talking to a guy who was swearing at him. He got really upset and was yelling at him. Once we were done conversing with the lady, Elder Thompson told us we needed to leave. The mean dude was videoing us and telling us to leave. The swearing unfortunately didn't cease. Elder Thompson was kind to him and said he knows God loves him so much. Once we were in our car and pulling out of the complex, the guy had walked all the way over to us and saw us in our car! He said some more rude things to us as we drove off. Elder Thompson still responded with kindness and a smile. What a great elder. Elder Bloomfield and I just smiled and observed.

I was really bummed that the Spirit was driven away so quickly when this occurred. Sometimes we get persecuted for righteousness' sake, but it means we're representing the Savior well. Amongst the three of us, we talked together and soon brought the Spirit back within a matter of minutes. I NEED the companionship of the Spirit when I serve; it's vital and crucial. I am beyond uncomfortable when I don't have it. Thank goodness the Lord promises us His Spirit when we live in righteousness; the sacrament prayers tell us this.

We got to go to the temple with Josué on Saturday!! It was a beautiful experience for him! Our member Hermano Robledo was kind and drove us there. He drives a Mini Cooper, so having the five of us in that little vehicle was really snug and tight. It was a little funny--even if my legs were pressed against the car console. The temple was wonderful as always! We plan on returning with Josué in two weeks!

Sunday was the greatest day of the week! The sacrament is obviously the biggest reason, but some other spectacular things happened. Jonatan, Karla, Eduardo, and Alejandro came to church!!! It was the first time for all four of them! Alejandro and Eduardo stayed for second hour. Sadly, the Aguilar family didn't come. FERNANDO GOT BAPTIZED!!!!! What a wonderful program! I was stressed as we prepared for this; there was a lot to do and we had to figure out some tricky details. Everything went well, however, and it made me happy to see Fernando so happy. He will be confirmed next Sunday! The greatest miracle of the week--and quite possibly, the greatest of the transfer (six-week period)--was when we got help from Hermano Paredes. HE WAS ABLE TO MOVE GRISSEL AND IRVIN'S RECORDS TO OUR WARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Elder Thompson and I had been praying earnestly for weeks that this would happen. We even prayed that morning about it. I have had faith that it would work out. After five or so tries with searching the name and church unit in Everett (where they used to attend church), I was mentally asking the Lord that it would work. Hermano Paredes tried one of the names in a different format, and it went through! The instant I saw it get recognized by the computer was a moment of chills for me! It finally worked!! Heavenly Father answered our prayers. This now allows us to make a baptismal plan for Grissel and Irvin's son Eli! What a happy moment!

I got to bear my testimony in sacrament meeting about how the Savior's perfect example has helped me avoid contention a few times recently. I loved being able to testify of truth in front of our five friends that were present.

What a week.

Elder Jones