What's
goodddd, how we doin? This week absolutely flew by! I'm so grateful every
single day for the amazing privilege and blessing it is to be a missionary and
representative of Jesus Christ! However, even more importantly, I'm so grateful
for the blessing of being a disciple of Christ and member of His restored
church! While my time as a missionary might not last forever, my time as a
disciple and member of Christ's church will, and that brings me so much joy and
hope for the future!
This
week's title was actually a quote from our friend in teaching Leticia, and it
really made me think. If you guys remember I've talked a little about her but
basically, she's got a lot of health challenges (physical and emotional) and is
passing through some pretty difficult times with her family. However, for the
past 5 weeks or so she's made the effort every Sunday to come to church. We
thought she wasn't going to make it this week due to some family stuff but on
Sunday morning we got a call, and she said she would be there! When we saw her
walk in and ask her how she was, with a big smile on her face she replied,
"I'm happy because I'm here". It made me pause and think about just
how much joy the gospel and church of Jesus Christ brings me, Leticia, and
millions of people around the world. Sometimes I forget just how big of an
impact the gospel is in my life, but as I was able to pause and reflect in that
moment, I realized the gospel truly is everything to me. That's a blessing I
never want to take for granted and I hope each one of us can always remember
the blessing the gospel truly is!
We've
made some awesome progress with a lot of the families we have in teaching and
should hopefully finish the mission out with some awesome baptisms! The biggest
miracle this week was with our friend Abi! She and her husband have been
progressing really well but are always super busy, and so we didn't know
exactly how they were feeling about baptism. However, on Sunday after church we
were able to talk to Abi and she really opened up with us and shared a lot of
all that she's been through throughout her life, and let's just say she's been
through a lot.
However,
as she was sharing all of the trials and difficulties she's experienced, she
started to cry and said "I feel like I've finally found my purpose and
this is where God wants me to be". There's nothing that has brought me
more pure joy in my entire life than seeing God change people's lives through
the gospel. I testify He knows us personally, has a plan for every single one
of us, and no matter how dark the night may be, light will always come in the
morning! Please keep Abi in your prayers that she will be able to continue with
her desire to be baptized this upcoming Saturday, and her husband Jaciel soon
after! I love you all, our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ love you,
and I'll see you all soon!
Love,
Elder McDonald
Word of the Week: Presidente y Hermana Castro!! Our new mission president and his wife,
the Castros arrived this past week and they're amazing! We'll meet them in
person this week, but they've got a ton of energy and are so excited to be all
in here!
Invitation of the Month: FOLLOW CHRIST!! If
there's one thing I could invite everyone to do after serving as a missionary
this past 2 years, I would simply say Follow Jesus Christ! Give your all to Him.
Be all in on keeping His commandments and covenants. Testify of Him. Study His
Atonement. Share His light. Nothing else will bring you greater joy and
blessings!
**Templooooo 👀**