Posts
Apopa is such a beautiful area. It's more fields and less city than I've ever been in (all my areas have been city-like). It's also the poorest area I've been to. This week I've had humbling experiences listening to the stories of such faithful people in their economic trials.
My bishop has quite the story: he grew up in a tiny adobe home and lived his whole life without owning a pair of shoes. He was 16 when the missionaries found him and invited him to church. He wanted to go very badly but he was embarrassed because he had no shoes to wear. He walked into church that first sunday afraid everyone would reject him for being barefoot. On the contrary, he was warmly received with many handshakes and hugs and felt completely welcomed. He continued going to church week after week. The ward bought him a pair of shoes. They taught him how to read. They changed his life. Now he's the bishop of the ward, with a nice suit and shoes, but he still has the heart of that 16 year old boy that walked in one sunday wanting to come closer to Christ. He recieved the gospel quickly and saw many miracles in his family. He loves the youth. He has a beautiful testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ and works closely with us to find all the 16 yr old boys without shoes!
There's a less active family who are starting to come back to church- the A family and they are just so special! J and J are both sister missionary age and we're trying to get them to start their papers! They left with us yesterday to do splits and we had an amazing time! They both have strong testimonies of the gospel.
At one visit, Hermana M was talking about the miracles she's seen in her life. She was telling us how one night a couple years ago they had just moved into their home and they had nothing to eat. Her kids were saying "mommy we're hungry" but they had nothing. She told them to go to sleep and that they would have food soon, "I promise" she said. 10 minutes later she heard a knock on the door. A woman who she didn't know answered and introduced herself as their new neighbor. Without knowing, she had brought a platter of food to welcome them and she excused herself for coming so late. M's eyes filled with tears as she humbly thanked God for blessing them with this simple dinner. As she told her story, J and J teared up and shared with us a similar story they had experienced looking for food as kids for their family of 8.
I've never gone through an experience like that, and as I sat there listening to these young women's stories, I said a thankful prayer to God for the life I've been given. I hope we all remember our many blessings and forget what we don't have, because there are MANY out there who have nothing and they live on with hearts full of gratitude.
Please remember that God has a plan for all of us. He gives us trials so that we may grow closer to Him. I am so grateful for all my life experiences that have given me the testimony and relationship I have with him today. Share it with others! We all desreve to know our Father in Heaven!
Con amor,
Hermana Infanzon
 |
| Only part of this picture was uploaded...still looks sweet though! |
pizza time!!!!
ReplyDelete