WE FOUND THE BIG FAMILY AGAIN!!!!!
So Saturday afternoon we went to this huge ghetto market over by our
area and one of the nephews from the big family found us as we walked
right past his uncle´s store. We knew that they had their little stands
there in that market and there´s another one in an even more ghetto
market in our area, but we didn´t know where they were. So that was good
because we haven´t been able to talk to the family for awhile now. Then
that night we were with the Bishop visiting a couple of people
and had an awesome lesson with one family, then went to visit another
family that´s a little hard to find sometimes. The Bishop had to go to a
meeting or something, so he took a micro nearby and we went to go find
this family. They weren´t there. So then we had written down for Plan B
the big family, la familia L**. So we thought we´d give it a shot
because we originally found the dad there on a Saturday night, and lo
and behold, his oldest son who supposedly joined the military, answered
the door. We talked for a sec and it turns out that he´s stationed in
M**, only like *** away, and so he´ll be home
every weekend for the next year that he´ll be stationed in M**! So
he invited us inside, and there´s his dad, sittin in a chair doing
nothing! I don´t know if he was exactly happy to see us or not, but we
sat down with them and had a short lesson. It´s very obvious that he´s
been hearing lots of rumors and has a different opinion now about the
Book of Mormon and the Church. But we were able to clear up some of that
and now it´s a whole ton better the whole situation because we have
contact with them again, and he straight up told us that he wasn´t sure
if he was going to go to church with us (which he didn´t). But the 3
daughters went again and also the oldest son that hasn´t gone for about 2
weeks now. So that was good, and we had some references yesterday and
basically it was just a really good day. Now we´ll just have to see what
the parents decide to do. But we had a very good talk with him that
night and were very very direct with things. Also that night, the Bishop
was talking to Elder V** about how he´s going home soon and who
knows if it was direct revelation or just him challenging us (but
everything I´ve heard this bishop say comes true....) but he challenged
us to have 3 baptisms before Elder V** goes home. WHAT?! We´ve lost
all of our investigators that had baptismal dates, but we´ve thought a
lot about this and know exactly what we need to do to see this happen.
I´m actually really excited thinking about it because we have to work
really really hard to be able to teach more than we usually get to here,
and I kinda miss teaching a lot everyday. I think that´s why yesterday
felt so good, because we got to teach the entire day and no one called
us and we didn´t have to go to the offices or the airport haha!
Other story. Tuesday and Wednesday this past week the President had
interviews with 4 of the zones here so we were packed with missionaries
all day long. So when that happens, we´re always forced against our
will to buy tons of food for everyone so everyone stays happy. So we
went to this one place where we always buy the best empanadas in the
entire city and for some weird reason they took forever putting together
our order. (usually they just bring it over to the offices for us and
we don´t even have to go there, but that wasn´t an option on Wednesday,
so we just went over there ourselves). So as we´re waiting, this one guy
comes up to us and just sits down with us at this table where we were and then begins to ask us how we are. So obviously it´s a
member or someone who just wants to Bible bash. One of the 2. So then he
asks us for a blessing and begins telling us his life´s story about how
he´s from La Paz but now lives in Cochabamba and how he was a
missionary in Bolivia, but now´s inactive. It was really interesting his
whole story and we got to know him a little bit, and he´s here in Santa
Cruz for some eye surgery that he needs. We got talking a little bit
about the Church and how his family aren´t members. He told us that he
really needed a blessing because of this surgery and his eye problems
and his family situation, and we explained how we were just headed over
to the offices really soon (which is only 1 block from the place) and
that the mission president was there and that he would be able to give
him a blessing. So we waited and talked with him for a while before
heading over to the offices. We waited for Presidente Zambrano to finish
up the interview that he was doing and then explained the situation and
he invited the member in to his office with Elder L** and I and then
he had a 2 minute interview with him and we gave him a blessing. We were
really surprised because we thought that Pdte Zambrano was going to
give the blessing, but he told the member that I was going to give it.
So that was kinda cool giving a blessing with a mission President/
former seventy in the circle with us. And wow. I can´t even explain what
a spiritual experience it was to be in that room at that moment with
one of my companions, Pdte Zambrano, and this inactive member from
Cochabamba. Just wow. Elder L** and I just looked at each other after
and quickly left the room and Pdte Zambrano had a little interview with
the member and we didn´t even know what to say. But the Priesthood is
real and Heavenly Father knows and loves His children. I´m positive that
this member will be active again really really soon and that his family
is going to get baptized. The Spirit is amazing.
Well, that´s basically it. This week´s going to be insane again
with tons of missionaries coming in from outside the city. But it´ll be
fun, like always.
Amor a todos,
Elder Groneman
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