Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Monday, March 23, 2015 - "I believe in Christ"

Hey everyone! Hope everyone is doing good! It's been only a couple days since I wrote last time, so I will give you an update on what has happened the last couple of days! :)

This week has been amazing! We have had a really good time working with Francisco. He decided to do a fast to help him with his desires to drink. I didn't know about that choice until after church when we talked and he told me that he has felt a great help from the Lord in his desires because of that decision. Wow... that was just so cool to hear that he understands that the Lord can truly help him. He knows Jesus lives. He has been going a week and a half without drinking he tells me. 

A missionary from this ward just got back from his mission, so we have been working a lot with him as well this week. He really wanted to know our investigators to be able to help us out. So that has been great! 

We've been given that challenge I explained on Wednesday to read the Book of Mormon in 100 days. I just finished 1 Nephi today! I believe that reading the Book of Mormon again has really blessed the work that I am doing in my personal life. I am loving the reading! I am really receiving new insights and things I have never noticed before, and I know it's because I am focused in the subjects I am reading. Plus, I am able to apply it in my teaching! It's been a great help. It has definitely blessed me!

While contacting this week, we found a girl named Flora. She lives alone and she seemed to be somewhat interested in our message. We set a time to go back, and we decided to try and do every lesson with her with a member present. We've had three lessons with her, but I truly believe this woman was prepared by God. We stay in these lessons for about an hour, but it's because she reads the entire folleto every time, and she understands. The first time we went back she had read the whole Restoration and had so many good questions, and so we were able to have the member give her a Book of Mormon, which really made a bond in between the two ladies. After that, we went back in two days and she had read all of the Plan of Salvation, and although she was a little confused, we knew it was more important to stay with her just a little bit longer than usual so that she could understand the doctrine. Then on Saturday we went back and she had read all the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and was in 1 Nephi 6, asking questions like why Nephi killed Laban and all that! But we once again were with another member, and she helped us out to explain the importance of the stories in the B o M and in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She is a wonderful investigator, and I really feel like she was put in our path for a reason. We have given her a baptismal date for the 13th of June, but we are starting to debate on if we should put it closer because of how fast she is progressing! She couldn't come to church due to a problem she had with one of her kids, because she is divorced and lives with just her mom, so she has to take care of three small kids alone, but we are hoping that the members that have come with us to visit her will help us out in getting her to church. We're going to coordinate that with the members during the week.

Anyways, that was our big ending to the week! haha It's super great being here, and I love being a part of this work. Teaching these people is so amazing, and I am so glad that I can be here. 

This work is true and it is from God. We've been given new cards to give out, called El vive, or in English, He lives. I testify that Jesus lives today and works with us. I have received personal revelation of that in my life, and part of that happened this week. I do not doubt it. Jesus lives and directs the church. I encourages you all to share that Jesus lives. We're coming close to Easter! It's the perfect time to do it! I love you all and like always, I am praying for you! Estoy orando para ustedes!

May the Lord bless you all!
Elder Weiss :)
This might be a duplicate picture from Wednesday's blog but I couldn't remember if I posted it.
Just some cute puppies!

Mother's note: I responded in E-chat to Parker to the above email and told him how I was reading in 2 Nephi about the Atonement and the difference between Sin and Transgression and told him what I had learned. This was his response:

Mom... why are you and me always on the same flow? We had personal revelation this week about the difference between sin and transgression. I had a question because transgression isn't when someone doesn't have a knowledge of something, nor is it the fact that someone doesn't have a choice. The difference is a covenant. Why? Adam knew that is was wrong to eat of the fruit, as well as did Eve. They knew it was sin, and it was indeed a sin. But for them it was a transgression. So the reason it was transgression for them at that time was because they were under no covenants. They got their covenants after taking the fruit. What does it say in our baptismal covenant? To always keep the commandments, so before making that covenant, all we do when we sin is we brake a commandment, but that is it. So it is a transgression. Now when we make a covenant and we sin, not only do we brake a commandment, but we also brake a covenant. That is the difference between sin and transgression. We literally talked about this last night. I think that is nuts. Holy cow. But that is how it is. So for the kids that aren't baptized yet but their parents are? The parents take the sins of the kids until they are baptized. You know why? Like it says D&C 88, the fathers take on the sins of the children until they are accountable. Now when the child gets baptized, that is when they make sin. But James 4:17 tells us that if we don't know something is sin, it doesn't fall upon us. It says sin is on those who know what is right and don't do it. So if a new commandment comes out that we don't know about, and we learn about it, we aren't in sin. Now if we keep going with what we were doing, and it brakes that new commandment, then sin falls upon us. But that is okay, that is why we have the atonement. So you and me, regardless of what happens, are always sinning, not transgressing, because we are under covenant. Only those who aren't under covenant are the ones who transgress. So wow... pretty nuts how we both thought of that this week.

Some boxing gloves, because we are boss....


And Elder Millward and I being us. :)