Sorry that I haven´t written in so long but I´ve been pretty busy doing work. Haha no, last week was a holiday and all the kids in town headed for the cyber shops and filled them up all day so we couldn´t write. Plus, the computer in the church wasn´t hooking up to the internet. Anyways, these past few weeks have been really crazy. We´ve seen so many big changes in the lives of a few of our investigators. To start it off, we had a baptismal service on friday of an little old man named Santos Diaz! It was awesome and the guy was smiling like a little kid, just like the phrase ¨We come into this world as babies and leave it as babies¨. But the story of this old man is a true testament that God has been preparing people to receive the gospel. Santos Diaz lost his wife about 20 to 30 years ago in an accident near his house, causing him to start drinking. He´d been known by many as ¨el viejito con vino¨ or the little old man with wine. My second night here in Pichanal, we were walking with a member who´s always with us and he said hi to ¨Hermano Diaz¨ when we walked past his house. Elder Sandberg and I were like,¨Miguel, who´s that guy, let´s stop by and teach him.¨ Well, we stopped by my second night and the man told us that he was having serious problems with his stomach that caused him to be in the bathroom for the greater part of the day. Miguel immediately shouted out,¨Elders, you can give him a Priesthood blessing.¨ Well, he accepted. Within a few days, he had improved greatly and to this day has not felt those problems seriously. After a month of teaching, Hermano Diaz was baptized. The week before his baptism, Miguel told us that Hermano Diaz was one of the town ¨borrachos¨ and that he got really sick on new years and was in the hospital for a few days. We stopped by his house two weeks later.
To this day, Hermano Diaz has not touched alcohol and attends church every week, reads as much as he can with his limited vision, and still struggles with the correct manner of pray but is constantly trying harder and harder. There´s no doubt in my mind that God has been preparing his children for a very long time. The happiness of missionary work is unparalleled and I will never be able to forget the spirit that I´ve felt while bringing salvation to their doorstep. I know that Christ lives and is willing to forgive us of a life-time of mistakes. I know that this is the true gospel of Christ and that it was restored by the prophet Joseph Smith.
Before I sign off, there´s a girl named Brenda that we´ve been teaching and has listened to the missionaries for 2 years, never having taken the decision to be baptized. Last night, after a family home evening, Brenda told us that she was going to be baptized and put the date by herself. The 7th of March at 7 PM we will see the long awaited baptism of Brenda. She´s changed temendously and I know that the Spirit is the catalyst of that change.
Unluckily, and unfortunately, Elder Sandberg was sent to Jujuy and I´ve been called to train a brand newby. They shall now call me ¨papi¨. I will be having my first son tomorrow at around midday.
The standard of truth has been erected; No unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done. I know it, I live it, I love it!
Elder Philpot
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