Family!
Our investigator Cesar has progressed all the way to baptism and confirmation this past weekend! That's the biggest news I have. Everything was perfect and Cesar's excitement was a joy to see. He was fully prepared to make the covenant and is now on his way as a faithful disciple of Christ.
Friday night we had a mission fireside about which we were told very little before we arrived. But the guest speaker turned out to be Sheri Dew! It was one of the best firesides so far on my mission. She spoke for at least 45 min and every word was a gem. Hers is the quote in the subject line. She also made the comment that repentance is the process of trying to become increasingly pure. It made me think about purity and its inherent power. Mom, I'm sure you would have loved to be there.
At church yesterday we read a line from The Teachings of George Albert Smith that I just loved. It's referring to the Restoration of the Gospel: "Our Father saw the futility of trying to save his sons and daughters until they could be inspired to come to him with the belief that he would hear and answer their prayers." It is really an interesting thought and a good explanation for why Father saw it fit to visit Joseph with His Son in such a grand way.
Well I love you all. Have a great week and happy Valentine's Day!
Elder Joshua Gathro
Friday, February 17, 2012
As in life, chill for best results.
Well not a whole lot of variance this week as far as our activities and happenings in the work. We had a lot of success in contacting investigators and less-actives that we've been asked to see. One lesson this week that I really enjoyed was with someone we met while walking past his house. He said he's tired of the Catholic church and is only interested in learning about Mormons. The lesson flowed more as a conversation, with us sharing the doctrine, and him asking questions, and then us answering him. When we taught about Joseph Smith, he said, "So then there was a prophet after him, right?" YES! It was wonderful. We're hoping and working to see him progressing.
In the middle of the previous paragraph, a man sitting beside my companion starting chatting with us. He's a really friendly guy, and he said that he has read in the Book of Mormon with his LDS neighbor before, over a period of several months. But "it didn't do anything for [him]." He said, "I have no desire or want to learn. My soul can't accept anything other than the Bible." How sad is that. The Book of Mormon testifies of Christ. The Church and Joseph Smith aside, if you believe in Christ you will believe in His words. And the Book of Mormon contains His words.
This morning in my personal study I read a little bit from Chapter 1 of Preach My Gospel. It made me realize that I need to help others realize that every invitation we extend, to read, to pray, to attend church, is really an invitation to come unto Christ. We cover that up sometimes, or maybe it just seems so obvious to us, but it doesn't always to others. They need to know that Christ is the one inviting them to read, to pray, and to come to church. That's just something on my mind this morning.
Well have a great week, siguen adelante y sean de buen animo!
Elder Joshua Gathro
In the middle of the previous paragraph, a man sitting beside my companion starting chatting with us. He's a really friendly guy, and he said that he has read in the Book of Mormon with his LDS neighbor before, over a period of several months. But "it didn't do anything for [him]." He said, "I have no desire or want to learn. My soul can't accept anything other than the Bible." How sad is that. The Book of Mormon testifies of Christ. The Church and Joseph Smith aside, if you believe in Christ you will believe in His words. And the Book of Mormon contains His words.
This morning in my personal study I read a little bit from Chapter 1 of Preach My Gospel. It made me realize that I need to help others realize that every invitation we extend, to read, to pray, to attend church, is really an invitation to come unto Christ. We cover that up sometimes, or maybe it just seems so obvious to us, but it doesn't always to others. They need to know that Christ is the one inviting them to read, to pray, and to come to church. That's just something on my mind this morning.
Well have a great week, siguen adelante y sean de buen animo!
Elder Joshua Gathro
I saw my first roadrunner!
Hey gang,
Well just as an update, the man who called us last Monday called us again this week and set up 3 appointments with us. We taught him once and he seems very interested and committed to read from the Book of Mormon and pray. He's already been to church several times and came yesterday as well. It's amazing. And along similar lines, a lady and her son came to our English ward yesterday with their member friend and wants to learn from the missionaries. We were at the Spanish ward during the first two hours of English services, but our ward mission leader met the lady and her son and grabbed another set of elders that were at the building and taught her the message of the Restoration. They even set up another appointment (for us). Can presents from the Lord come any more nicely wrapped? The work is moving along with haste in both of our wards. Members are handing us referrals weekly it seems. I don't really understand what qualifies us to have so many rich blessings but we're trying to show our gratitude and lead His sheep to Christ.
In conversation with a member I mentioned that I have a friend serving in Spokane WA Spanish-speaking. Afterward my companion said, "I have a friend in Spokane, Spanish-speaking. He's from Georgia." Turns out that Dominic Clarke was in my companion's district in the MTC. Crazy, huh?
Que mas...Another milagro (miracle). We set the goal of three new investigators for this past week and prayed and worked to get them. Well Wednesday night one of our already investigators called to cancel a lesson because he needed to go see the doctor for chest pain. So with the open time we then had, we visited a referral from Christmas that we've already been by several times and never had a lesson go through. But we knocked on the door and they just welcomed us in. Without having set an appointment, we had a great lesson with them and walked out having 3 new investigators - a family! The father didn't actually speak up much during our time there, which made us reflect on how the Lord had prepared us and the father. We had stopped by several times previously, and even though we didn't have a lesson, we were able to chat with him on those occasions about things going on in his life and just build a friendship. It was how the Lord wanted it to be, so that when they did let us in their home to teach, we could already have a friendship to build on despite his silence in the lesson.
Well it was a pretty rewarding week. But don't think that it wasn't without it's challenges. Those just aren't as exciting to share :)
I love you all,
Elder Joshua Gathro
PS- Was there a presidential debate in Jacksonville this week?
Well just as an update, the man who called us last Monday called us again this week and set up 3 appointments with us. We taught him once and he seems very interested and committed to read from the Book of Mormon and pray. He's already been to church several times and came yesterday as well. It's amazing. And along similar lines, a lady and her son came to our English ward yesterday with their member friend and wants to learn from the missionaries. We were at the Spanish ward during the first two hours of English services, but our ward mission leader met the lady and her son and grabbed another set of elders that were at the building and taught her the message of the Restoration. They even set up another appointment (for us). Can presents from the Lord come any more nicely wrapped? The work is moving along with haste in both of our wards. Members are handing us referrals weekly it seems. I don't really understand what qualifies us to have so many rich blessings but we're trying to show our gratitude and lead His sheep to Christ.
In conversation with a member I mentioned that I have a friend serving in Spokane WA Spanish-speaking. Afterward my companion said, "I have a friend in Spokane, Spanish-speaking. He's from Georgia." Turns out that Dominic Clarke was in my companion's district in the MTC. Crazy, huh?
Que mas...Another milagro (miracle). We set the goal of three new investigators for this past week and prayed and worked to get them. Well Wednesday night one of our already investigators called to cancel a lesson because he needed to go see the doctor for chest pain. So with the open time we then had, we visited a referral from Christmas that we've already been by several times and never had a lesson go through. But we knocked on the door and they just welcomed us in. Without having set an appointment, we had a great lesson with them and walked out having 3 new investigators - a family! The father didn't actually speak up much during our time there, which made us reflect on how the Lord had prepared us and the father. We had stopped by several times previously, and even though we didn't have a lesson, we were able to chat with him on those occasions about things going on in his life and just build a friendship. It was how the Lord wanted it to be, so that when they did let us in their home to teach, we could already have a friendship to build on despite his silence in the lesson.
Well it was a pretty rewarding week. But don't think that it wasn't without it's challenges. Those just aren't as exciting to share :)
I love you all,
Elder Joshua Gathro
PS- Was there a presidential debate in Jacksonville this week?
Monday, January 23, 2012
el campo blanco esta ya para la siega
I hope the subject line is kosher to use. It means the field is ripe, all ready to harvest. And that is the truth. During companion study this morning my companion and I received a phone call from someone who said, "I want to take the missionary lessons." ...What?? I couldn't believe it. His friend is a member of our ward who gave him our number. We'll see what happens. There are great things taking place among the hearts of the children of God. Angels are preparing them.
We made a lot of progress this week I feel. The members are helping us forward the work as we align our goals with theirs. God is blessing us to be in the right place at the right time. The scripture D&C 68:6 has become real to me.
This week our zone had a temple trip scheduled. We forgot to ask a member to drive us there so the we had to use our car, and when we pulled out of the apartment complex at 6:45am we realized we didn't know how to get there. And I had no idea whether or not we would make it for our session. We called other missionaries and one of them gave us some help but we still felt lost and pressed for time. So it was a miracle to walk into the temple with just enough time to make it in the session. It was relaxing to feel the peace of the temple in contrast to the intense worrying just minutes earlier. I believe the Lord helped us find our way so that we could enjoy His sacred house.
I was reading in the November Ensign and found this quote from Elder Scott: "Scriptures can calm an agitated soul, giving peace, hope, and a restoration of confidence in one's ability to overcome the challenges of life. They have potent power to heal emotional challenges when there is faith in the Savior. They can accelerate physical healing." Trust in the scriptures and the powerful influence they can bring into your life.
Enjoy your week of miracles and find joy in the struggles!
Elder Joshua Gathro
We made a lot of progress this week I feel. The members are helping us forward the work as we align our goals with theirs. God is blessing us to be in the right place at the right time. The scripture D&C 68:6 has become real to me.
This week our zone had a temple trip scheduled. We forgot to ask a member to drive us there so the we had to use our car, and when we pulled out of the apartment complex at 6:45am we realized we didn't know how to get there. And I had no idea whether or not we would make it for our session. We called other missionaries and one of them gave us some help but we still felt lost and pressed for time. So it was a miracle to walk into the temple with just enough time to make it in the session. It was relaxing to feel the peace of the temple in contrast to the intense worrying just minutes earlier. I believe the Lord helped us find our way so that we could enjoy His sacred house.
I was reading in the November Ensign and found this quote from Elder Scott: "Scriptures can calm an agitated soul, giving peace, hope, and a restoration of confidence in one's ability to overcome the challenges of life. They have potent power to heal emotional challenges when there is faith in the Savior. They can accelerate physical healing." Trust in the scriptures and the powerful influence they can bring into your life.
Enjoy your week of miracles and find joy in the struggles!
Elder Joshua Gathro
"Pre-Columbian warfare is what it's all about"
Hey Fam,
Well it was a good week. I'm not sure if I have very many updates.
Although one of our investigators is making significant progress
toward baptism. It's a thrill! And I feel like I really have little to
do with it. We found him through a referral from the temple Christmas
lights - although we didn't really "find" him. He was given to us it
seems. He works with a member of our ward and they are great friends.
The member is helping him understand and feel comfortable with the
Church. The Lord has just put this one in our hands.
I know this is probably the shortest email I've ever sent but that's
the weekly highlight. Moroni 8:3
Elder Joshua Gathro
Well it was a good week. I'm not sure if I have very many updates.
Although one of our investigators is making significant progress
toward baptism. It's a thrill! And I feel like I really have little to
do with it. We found him through a referral from the temple Christmas
lights - although we didn't really "find" him. He was given to us it
seems. He works with a member of our ward and they are great friends.
The member is helping him understand and feel comfortable with the
Church. The Lord has just put this one in our hands.
I know this is probably the shortest email I've ever sent but that's
the weekly highlight. Moroni 8:3
Elder Joshua Gathro
Saturday, January 14, 2012
The real reason for the flood
Salutations,
This week was exciting and we made a lot of progress. We received 9 referrals from the Mesa Temple Visitors' Center and one of them turned out to be less actives that are not on our records. Another is a really cool guy in his 20s who has been trying to arrange a time with his wife for us to stop by again. And another is so eager to learn about the gospel. We stopped by and he said, "Hey can we set up a lesson for tomorrow?" I was actually on exchanges the following day but the lesson went through and we said that he will absolutely be baptized, but wants to see a baptism take place before deciding on a date. Pretty incredible right? And he works with a member of our English ward so he's already got someone he can turn to for questions and support (a man from England who is a hoot). It's amazing how prepared some people are. Hopefully I'll have more to add next week about him.
We are teaching a 12-yr old right now that has a lot of family troubles. My companion thinks that the mother is crazy :) Our lesson early last week had a lot of distractions from her family and she was really unsettled about religious things. Her brother told us she seemed really bitter about the Church because some other family members had discouraged her. But when we came back a couple days ago it was drastically different. The lesson was reverent, free of distractions, and she told us about things she had done to help her family, and be more of a peacemaker in the house. It was wonderful. She seems to be understanding the teachings of Jesus Christ in relation to her life and she is recognizing the Spirit.
Last night we were cruising the streets and walked past a husband and wife sitting outside. We couldn't see more than the husband's outline and the wife was the one chatting with us. She said English missionaries had been by a couple weeks ago, but her husband couldn't learn because he only speaks Spanish. So we turned to where he was sitting and starting speaking Spanish. He stood up and walked over to us and accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon. Our brief conversation with him made me think about the need to explain first that the Book of Mormon testifies that Jesus is the Christ. First and foremost it leads all people to the Savior. And our words should first and foremost do the same.
Well there are many more experiences taking place out here but I hope you enjoy and are uplifting by these. I love you!
Elder Joshua Gathro
This week was exciting and we made a lot of progress. We received 9 referrals from the Mesa Temple Visitors' Center and one of them turned out to be less actives that are not on our records. Another is a really cool guy in his 20s who has been trying to arrange a time with his wife for us to stop by again. And another is so eager to learn about the gospel. We stopped by and he said, "Hey can we set up a lesson for tomorrow?" I was actually on exchanges the following day but the lesson went through and we said that he will absolutely be baptized, but wants to see a baptism take place before deciding on a date. Pretty incredible right? And he works with a member of our English ward so he's already got someone he can turn to for questions and support (a man from England who is a hoot). It's amazing how prepared some people are. Hopefully I'll have more to add next week about him.
We are teaching a 12-yr old right now that has a lot of family troubles. My companion thinks that the mother is crazy :) Our lesson early last week had a lot of distractions from her family and she was really unsettled about religious things. Her brother told us she seemed really bitter about the Church because some other family members had discouraged her. But when we came back a couple days ago it was drastically different. The lesson was reverent, free of distractions, and she told us about things she had done to help her family, and be more of a peacemaker in the house. It was wonderful. She seems to be understanding the teachings of Jesus Christ in relation to her life and she is recognizing the Spirit.
Last night we were cruising the streets and walked past a husband and wife sitting outside. We couldn't see more than the husband's outline and the wife was the one chatting with us. She said English missionaries had been by a couple weeks ago, but her husband couldn't learn because he only speaks Spanish. So we turned to where he was sitting and starting speaking Spanish. He stood up and walked over to us and accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon. Our brief conversation with him made me think about the need to explain first that the Book of Mormon testifies that Jesus is the Christ. First and foremost it leads all people to the Savior. And our words should first and foremost do the same.
Well there are many more experiences taking place out here but I hope you enjoy and are uplifting by these. I love you!
Elder Joshua Gathro
Friday, January 6, 2012
Transferred
Hey family!
I was transferred this week to a new area and I love it! There's a lot I could say and I hope it comes out clearly. Our mission rearranged a lot of areas within zones and whatnot, and my new companion and I have been "white-washed," meaning that it is a new area for both of us. We cover a Spanish ward as well as an English ward, which is also a new thing for both my companion and I. When we were transferred on Wednesday, the mission hadn't arranged an apartment for us. (The Spanish branch was split so a new companionship came in to the zone which they needed to accomodate for). So we crashed with some other elders and finally moved into our aparment Saturday night, although the only thing we have besides our luggage is beds. And now toilet paper thanks to the member's custodial closet. But we're getting by just fine. The area that we're in is full of Mexicans. It is awesome! There are even street signs in Spanish. And because we're His servants in a new area, the Lord is helping us greatly. The day we started working in this area I had better Spanish than ever before. My companion and I have about the same level Spanish, so there's a lot more need for me to understand what the people are saying, as opposed to Mesa where I just turned to my companion when I didn't understand. It's making me be a lot more involved, which is something I have realized that I love. And I didn't realize how uninvolved I was in Mesa. I can already feel personal growth simply from being more engaged in the work. There is a lot more that can be learned. The wards here can use a lot of work. There are a lot of inactives and several good leads on people interested in the Church. I honestly hope they keep me here for a long time.
Side note: Tyler was in my dream last night and we were speaking Spanish. Also, last week I had a dream that the whole family was called to a Spanish speaking mission and Mom had fluent Spanish only after like 2 months. It was awesome, Mom!
We're staying busy and I'm being a lot more involved, which is really helping me become the missionary I want to be, even in the few days that we've been here. It's a struggle being so unfamiliar with the area, especially nightly planning, but the Lord is helping us. The Bible Dictionary says that where there is true faith there are miracles. We are showing our faith as we work, and I am excited for the continued miracles we'll see. I love you, all! Happy New Year!
Elder Joshua Gathro
I was transferred this week to a new area and I love it! There's a lot I could say and I hope it comes out clearly. Our mission rearranged a lot of areas within zones and whatnot, and my new companion and I have been "white-washed," meaning that it is a new area for both of us. We cover a Spanish ward as well as an English ward, which is also a new thing for both my companion and I. When we were transferred on Wednesday, the mission hadn't arranged an apartment for us. (The Spanish branch was split so a new companionship came in to the zone which they needed to accomodate for). So we crashed with some other elders and finally moved into our aparment Saturday night, although the only thing we have besides our luggage is beds. And now toilet paper thanks to the member's custodial closet. But we're getting by just fine. The area that we're in is full of Mexicans. It is awesome! There are even street signs in Spanish. And because we're His servants in a new area, the Lord is helping us greatly. The day we started working in this area I had better Spanish than ever before. My companion and I have about the same level Spanish, so there's a lot more need for me to understand what the people are saying, as opposed to Mesa where I just turned to my companion when I didn't understand. It's making me be a lot more involved, which is something I have realized that I love. And I didn't realize how uninvolved I was in Mesa. I can already feel personal growth simply from being more engaged in the work. There is a lot more that can be learned. The wards here can use a lot of work. There are a lot of inactives and several good leads on people interested in the Church. I honestly hope they keep me here for a long time.
Side note: Tyler was in my dream last night and we were speaking Spanish. Also, last week I had a dream that the whole family was called to a Spanish speaking mission and Mom had fluent Spanish only after like 2 months. It was awesome, Mom!
We're staying busy and I'm being a lot more involved, which is really helping me become the missionary I want to be, even in the few days that we've been here. It's a struggle being so unfamiliar with the area, especially nightly planning, but the Lord is helping us. The Bible Dictionary says that where there is true faith there are miracles. We are showing our faith as we work, and I am excited for the continued miracles we'll see. I love you, all! Happy New Year!
Elder Joshua Gathro
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