Transfers: Staying in Lugo!

Hey family!

Last year, I got transferred right before my birthday, the members didn't really know me so my birthday was well spent with the missionaries in Mostoles. Well transfers came yesterday and... I get to spend it with all the members I have known for 4 months now! We are having a party on Friday, should be fun!  I also get to finish training Elder Hathaway! I'm excited!

 

clichè train track

 

We had a pretty good week. This week we have been working a lot with a lady named Graciela and her two kids. We have been focusing a lot lately on getting her to church. We thought the key would be her friend Alejandra that we just started teaching this week. We focused a lot on the importance of church attendance with her too. Both of them talked to each other and planned on coming with their kids. We called Saturday night just confirming that they were still coming and they still said yes. But then Sunday comes and they didn't go. It's one of the struggles we have had lately getting people to church. But the kids are still doing well. One of the kids shared the Book of Mormon with his teacher and she accepted it. Which is really cool that he is sharing the gospel.

Wellington is also doing well. We are helping him get his girlfriend to move out. He is afraid to do it because he doesn't like being alone. But he knows he needs to so he wants to. He still has trouble getting up for church too. This week he should of come because we had the time change and we got an hour more of sleep. We've finished all of the lessons so now it's just a matter of those two things.

You all motivated me to get sushi this week!
Good ol crunch roll!

We also were doing some old investigator calls last week. We were able meet with one of them. His name is Alfonso. He's from Venezuela so Andrea can help a lot there. He is super prepared though! He said that he knows the Book of Mormon is true and he wants to be baptized. Work just gets in the way of him coming to church. We are excited to work with him.

Other than that, we contacted a lot this week because we are trying to find new people. Saturday was super hard though because the only time we had to contact were the two hours during the Real Madrid vs. Barça game. There was noooooo one! But we were able to find one!

 

I decided to learn the dialect of Spanish that they speak up here. It's pretty cool. I can present myself as a missionary and say some phrases that impress people. 

 

 In spanish it would be:

Hola somos misioneros de la iglesia de Jesucristo de los santos de los ultimos dias. tenemos un libro llamado el libro de mormon. habla de los pueblos en las Americas.

In galego it's:

Ola son un misioneiro da igrexa de Xesucristo dos santos dos ultimos dias. Temos un livro chamado o Livro de Mormon. fala dos povos en as Americas.

Similar but different. It's fun!

Hope everyone has a great week! Enjoy Halloween!

-Elder Stevenson

 

 

 

A Coruña soccer p day

Hey Family!

We had a really good week this week!

On Tuesday, we went and visited Andrea's friend Mario again. He hadn't read the chapter we left with him so we went along reading it with him. It was 2 Nephi Chapter 4 which is amazing. We thought it would be nice for him because he told us he had trouble falling into temptation so it was good. He said to us, "I'm glad we read that today, not yesterday but today was when I needed it." That was pretty cool. Then we met with him again on Friday and taught the Plan of Salvation. He really liked it and we invited him to be baptized on December 6th and he said yes! It's super cool and we are excited to help him towards that date.

We are also working really hard with Wellington trying to get him ready for baptism. He is doing the things he needs to except come to church!! But with the work he has he gets very little sleep. But soon he will come! It's really nice that we teach him in his barber shop because there are always people in there and he tells them to sit down and listen to us. He is our main source of new investigators which is nice.

Fredy is also doing well and helps us find people but he isn't coming to church either and he can! This week he said that without a doubt he would be there... didnt show. But things are going well. He's just getting some things in his life in order.

Wednesday, I got to go to El Ferrol for exchanges and when we pull into the city it is pouring rain. I mean POURING!! And guess who forgot his umbrella in Lugo... the walk to their apartment was miserable. But at least they had an extra for me to use which was nice. It's a pretty nice area up there.

 

When I came back on the bus on Thursday and got to the station my companion and the member once again arrived late. Instead of trying the whole phone thing again, I went and sat down and a somewhat drunk Polish man started talking to me. Luckily, he spoke Spanish cuz I can manage with Portuguese but Polish- no way. We started talking he had some pretty normal anti mormon questions for me so I answered them. But then it got to the point where he had some deep down Plan of Salvation questions. So while waiting for my comp I was able to teach him the entire Plan of Salvation. He didn't want anything and hopefully he will remember it in the future but it was cool teaching him.

Other than that we worked a lot with some less actives and members this week. We had an activity in the church where we got to teach about member missionary work and were able to get some help from the members with that which was nice.

Hope everyone had a great week. I love you all!

-Elder Stevenson

 

2

Baptism!

 

Hey Family!

 

We had a really good week and it ended with a baptism!

 

On Tuesday, we met with a reference that Andrea gave us on Monday night and so we visited with him on Tuesday. His name is Mario and he is a really great man. A very large Colombian. He's a boxer, it's pretty cool. When we met with him, he had a swollen face because he lost his fight on Saturday. It was pretty sweet. He has a lot of potential! He has been trying to become a Catholic Frei but he always backs out and he didn't know why. Andrea told us to focus on the priesthood during the lesson so we did, but still taught the restoration. The spirit was very strong during the lesson. He feels Joseph Smith was a prophet which is really great. We also invited him to be baptized and he is very willing. Later that night we were able to meet with Andrea. We had 4 members at the lesson, people she has made friendships with. We finished the last of lesson 5. (I don't remeber if I told you but we teach that lesson before baptism now.) And we were talking about her baptism date. Well then everyone starts talking at once to her and when more than one speaks I get lost because I can't decide who to focus on. Anyways then we hear her say "Elders, I'm getting baptized on Saturday!" We were more than O.K. with that but it would take A LOT of planning the next few days! We get home and try and call the district leader so he can come down and do an interview and one of the phones wasn't working. Mine? Or his? I'm not sure. We finally get a hold of him like 3 minutes before bed and ask him if he could come down. He already had planned to go to another area to do a companion exchange. He said we would figure it out at district meeting. On the bus there with just the clothes on my back, I get a call from him saying you are going to A Coruña so the the zone leader can do the interview. So I got to have that fun experience. She passed with flying colors. He said he felt like he was interviewing a member. She's that prepared.

Now the fun experience on Thursday! I get back to Lugo and my companion isn't in the bus station waiting for me! I go looking around and he's not there. So I start asking people if I can use their phone and not a single one let me! I wanted to plead to them just like Alma did to Amulek:  "Will ye give to an humble servant of God something to eat?" or in my case "Will ye give to an humble servant of God a telephone call?" But nothing! I decide, well for the first time in my life, I'm going to try a pay-phone. It ate my coin!  :(  So I just sat down and prayed. 30 minutes later he and the member he was with came running in. They thought I got there at 10:15. So they were there earlier but then left to go drop off the church curtains at the cleaners and eat sandwitches but at least they showed up.

Friday, we go to the church to go get the baptism dress and take it to her house and it's not there!! We looked everywhere and called everyone. But nothing, no where to be found! All we had for clothes for her were one jumpsuit for a child, one jumpsuit size small (that was our only hope) and 2 GIANT dresses! So yeah. She had to try it on and she was busy that day so we were hoping it fit!

 

Saturday, we had a great baptismal service. So all the rush paid off. The jumpsuit fit (barely.) Many came and supported her. Including Oscar (Margarita's son) and Mario, the friend we are teaching. I had the opportunity to baptize her. It was really powerful. Right as she came out of the water, she started crying. The spirit was so strong. Afterward she bore an absolutly amazing testimony. She is truly happy and converted.

 

 

 

It is such a blessing to be able to bring people into the gospel and help strengthen the church. Seeing them gain a testimony. It really helps me continue building mine. We really did nothing to convert her. She was prepared from the beginning. Through her desire, she recieved her answer. We just sat there and taught what we had to teach.

 

I hope everyone had a great week and keep sharing the gospel with everyone! This baptism was a member reference. There are people prepared that are our friends. Pray about it and listen to what the spirit says about who you should invite. Don't be afraid! I love you all!

-Elder Stevenson

Conference tv

Hello Family!
 

Well we had a really good week again this week!
 

Andrea is still progressing incredibly well. We were able to meet with her a couple of times this week and she came to every session of General Conference we could watch because of the time difference. We saw the Saturday Morning, Priesthood, Relief Society, and Sunday Morning sessions. She wrote down a lot of the questions and doubts that she had on a piece of paper and she received an answer to everything. We were talking about her baptism and how she won't be in Lugo on the 18th so she asked if she could do it earlier! We are going to meet with her on Tuesday and see what she says and then Thursday do the interview then Saturday the baptism! Hopefully all will go well. She basically spent the entire week in the church she wants to be there. So we will see how it goes.

Wellington is doing really well. He finally came to church this week! He came to one of the sessions of conference. He has his date for the 18th and he is progressing towards it. So we are super happy!
 

We have also been meeting with a family. They are a reference from Margarita and are super cool! The kids do really well with reading the Book of Mormon and they love the visits. They are progressing really well the have a date for November 29th. So we're excited.
 

Oscar, Margarita's son is also doing really well. We had a very spiritual lesson with him about repentance and resisting temptation. He had read 2 Nephi ch. 4 and it basically drove the entire lesson. He is doing really well and his girlfriend that lives in Ourense looked for the missionaries because she has seen the change in his life and how she wants it too. She and her daughter are both on a baptismal date also.

pulpo gallego: best meal in the mission so far!

 

One of our investigator's named Edimicio, a man from Brazil who still basically only speaks Portuguese, came to conference, all the sessions, and enjoyed it a lot. He was also able to establish a nice relationship with the members which was good. He was a man that we hadn't been able to meet with for a couple weeks but we just called him and invited him and he came. It was a really good experience for him.
 

The work is just going super well here right now. The members are finally helping and people are finally progressing which is great.
 

Hope everyone had a great week and enjoyed conference as well. Love you all and hope you have a great week!!

Love

-Elder Stevenson