We have had a lot of progress happen through the week and the time
went by so quickly! But hey, that's the life of the mission. As long
as work is getting done and people are converting unto the Lord, I'm
couldn't be happier.
On Tuesday, we stopped by this guy we met a few weeks ago named Mike.
We taught him the Restoration and it went so well! He is looking to
get back into church and have more of a relationship with God. He
seemed very interested when we gave him a Book of Mormon. It's always
a great experience to teach others how to build their relationship
with God. Having that kind of trust from the Lord means a lot to me,
especially when I might not be the most eloquent speaker. He still
supports me and allows the Spirit to touch the hearts of those I
teach. It truly is a heartfelt experience no matter how many times it
happens.
Wednesday, we had such a great dinner at the Kirklands! Sister
Kirkland is a Jewish convert, so she had us over for a Jewish Seder.
It was fun with all the different kind of food and wearing a yarmulke
(little white Jewish hat). Sara was also there so we were able to have
a great time with a lot of great people. After dinner, we went to a
family's house who is at the edge of our area. Their names are Gentry
Lamartin, Gentry Jr., and Cindy Sutjak. Gentry Sr. and Cindy are
engaged and they just moved from Bethlehem PA. Gentry Sr is the only
member in the family and it is so crazy because Cindy practically
knows everything about the church. She watches the Mormon channel,
reads from the Book of Mormon, watches general conference, and has
read most of the Relief Society manual. The only thing is is that she
is afraid to receive an answer if the Book of Mormon is true. Gentry
was a major support in helping us teach Cindy the importance of
receiving an answer to her prayers. It's going to be a little tough
because she's content where she is, but we will keep being persistent!
They are a great family, and we just found out the ward assigned us to
be their home teachers, which is pretty neat.
Thursday was a big day for us. We had Zone Training and I was able to
play the trumpet for the musical number. It was neat, there was a
family in the ward who had a trumpet they let me borrow on Monday. It
was a little funny because the third valve is stuck, so I had to find
a hymn I'd only have to use the first two valves which I was able to
find with "I'll go where you want me to go". It went so well and my
Zone Leader Elder Jewkes complimented me on Heavenly Father blessing
me with the talent to play, which really hit me with the Spirit. I
have a lot of great and supportive leaders and an amazing Heavenly
Father who made it a miracle for me to prepare something in such short
notice. After Zone Training, we went on an exchange and I came back to
Kutztown with Elder Hunter. It was great because Elder Hunter and I
taught a good number of lessons, including teaching Michelle. She has
read all of 1 Nephi! Which is so amazing! We answered questions she
had about it and we tried committing her to baptism, and she wants to,
but she's still a little hesitant, which we will be working on for
sure. But holy cow, Elder Hunter is such a great example! He has been
out for 22 months and he was teaching by the Spirit and is so diligent
in the work. I learned so much from him and he really helped me out on
a number of things I am working on as a missionary. What really
touched me though was that he was asking me for advice on things like
training (his companion is a golden). It really meant a lot to know my
leaders trust me enough for advice. I really am in a great District
and Zone.
Saturday, we taught Eleanor, and it was a drop lesson. She wasn't
keeping any commitments and wasn't really thinking about change. It
was a little hard though because we did service for her and she really
likes us around since she's elderly and lives by herself. But we
stated our purpose and explained it clearly and she understood
completely which was very nice. The Lord really knows how to make it
all work out.
On Sunday, Elder Thielen gave a talk on charity which went so well! He
taught with conviction and by the Spirit. Everyone in the ward loved
it. We also found out Sister Kirkland was going to be teaching Gospel
Principles which is really exciting because she will be working
closely with those we teach and she's a great fellowshipped. We also
taught a less active named Brother Benson. It was hard because we
hadn't seen brother Benson since I came to Kutztown. He's a return
missionary and he hasn't been to church in months. We came over and we
read scriptures with him. He wasn't totally into it, but he was
grateful we stopped by. It was heartbreaking to the both of us seeing
him struggle, especially with him being active when I first came into
the ward. It just goes to show Satan is relentless in tearing down our
faith, which is why we need to be relentless ourselves in finding
strength in the Gospel. The Lord wants us to succeed and find peace
and it will only come through obedience to the Lord. It is my hope we
can all find peace in the Gospel and through the Lord Jesus Christ. I
hope all of you have a great week this week! Spring is here to stay on
the East Coast and we love it here! May the Lord bless you all.
Elder Cortes
Kutztown, PA
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| Jewish Seder |
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