Isabel and Jesus Missing

Marko February 4, 2013 1 Comment

Dear Family and Friends,

Man.. things haven’t been easy lately. A couple of weeks ago, we found an amazing couple through an hour of power miracle. I think I told you about them, Isabel and Jesus. After a few lessons with members, we extended a baptismal invitation and set dates for the 23rd of February. I thought they were going to get baptized without a doubt. And, the next thing you now, they vanished. Just gone. Last we heard from them, they gave us a phone call saying they were on their way to church. And they never came. We have knocked on their door several times a day, called them, and left many notes. And we haven’t heard from them in over a week. I don’t know why this has happened to me so much. It’s happened with so many people that I can think of on my mission. Trinidad and Julia, Miriam, Israel … just tons and tons of people that should have been baptized. People just … disappearing. It can be discouraging, especially when they seemed so interested. This exact scenario has happened to me so much.. people just vanishing with no trace. I don’t know why. It just seems so weird.
So we have been dedicating a lot of our time to finding. But… it’s easy to find new investigators the problem is keeping them. People, especially Hispanic people, will have no problem in letting you come inside and talk to them but they have no sense of commitment.

I love finding. I can knock knock knock for hours. I love it! But it doesn’t really bring many results. and it can be discouraging. This week we had the most intense rejection of my mission. Some white skinny drunk guy was out on his front porch smoking a cigarette and we tried talking to him and he started yelling at us and swearing at us. It’s funny how when I was back home, especially in sports and high school, you just get used to hearing that language. But hearing it now was really strange. It was really strong language! He started saying bad things about God and Jesus… it really made me mad. But you can’t say anything. You just gotta move on to the next house. As we did, he kept knocking other nearby houses, he kept yelling at us and started shooting bottle rockets at us. Nothing happened, but it’s OK. I’m just lucky that I get to take all that garbage from people in the name of the Lord, and representing Him. He was spit at and mocked… so I can do it to.

Juan Aleman

We don’t really have much going right now. It seems like every day is just a mental grind. Just going at it one day at a time. We have just a handful of investigators we are teaching and it’s a different battle with all of them. The biggest thing right now is getting them to church. We got one man to church yesterday. His name is Juan Aleman. Elder Cope and I knocked into him a while ago. We have been teaching him for a while. he is a really humble, simple man. He doesn’t really understand much, and he can’t read. Not sure how much he grasps from our lessons, but he must understand enough because he says right now he is trying to decide between our church and the catholic church, where he has always gone. His prayers are so awesome. We tell him to pray specifically and he does. He goes “dear God, please tell me if Joseph Smith was a prophet, and if this is the true church. Amen.” and then he just looks at us and goes, “did I do it good? was that right?” haha it’s pretty sweet. He is maybe 50 or 60. Good guy. He came to church yesterday and he said it was good. That’s about all he said about it. That’s about all he says about everything haha.

Every fast Sunday, after church, we have a huge “break the fast” with the branch. I diet pretty hard every day, but sundays are my cheat day. And holy cow did I cheat yesterday! I just caught a wiff of the homemade flour tortillas they had and about died. Mexican food is so good. I had so many tacos and frijoles al charro and I don’t even know what else. I was so full. My stomach is killing me today!

Martinez

A couple of weeks ago, some of the English elders in Vidor, Texas. They had been teaching a Hispanic family, the Martinez’s, that had been going to church out there in their English ward for a long time and spoke relatively good English, but definitely understood Spanish better. It makes me mad.. because even though it’s a little far from Beaumont, they belong to OUR BRANCH because Spanish is their FIRST language but those elders and that ward snagged them because they were closer. Whatever. I’m not bitter. ANYWAY, they had been teaching them for a while and they were reading the Book of Mormon and going to church and wanted to be baptized but wouldn’t commit to a specific date. So the elders called us and asked to come to a lesson with them and try to set a date because they thought there was something of a language barrier there (what does THAT tell you, English elders?!) so Elder Jones and I went by. The English elders called us their “closers.” Which was kind of fun. I felt like Kobe Bryant in missionary mode. It was a fun lesson. Elder Jones still didn’t really speak much Spanish and it was a make or break lesson so I kind of took over. Anyway, it went really well and we set their dates for February 3rd. We got to go to their baptism! They seemed really excited! It was great. I love going to other missionary’s baptisms because it motivates me. Well at the baptism sister Martinez introduced us to her sister and her nephew, who actually live in Beaumont, and aren’t members! We got to talk to them a little bit and we got along really well, and set up an appointment to come by. That right there is where missionary work gets done, not tracting. So hopefully it goes well!

Juan Padilla and Maldonados

Last night we saw Juan Padilla. We were in his area in Lumberton (man, we drive around all of east Texas! It’s crazy we are the only Spanish missionaries around!) anyway we just said hi and talked to the Maldonado family for a bit. They are awesome. Christian Maldonado, the 17 year old, comes out on visits with us all the time. All he thinks about is soccer and going on a mission haha he is sweet. All of the white girls in Lumberton are in love with him since he just got here from Mexico and can’t speak English and he is a good looking kid. But he doesn’t even give them the time of day, haha. Such a boss. Anyway we had an appointment in Juan’s area with some guy from Honduras that turns out just let us into his house so he could try to convert us to his church. In the beginning of my mission, if I could see that an appointment was going downhill and the person we were teaching didn’t have any interested, I wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to bash them up with the bible! But now, I just think that’s so stupid. Maybe it’s me getting mature or what haha but I just sat there and let him say what he had to say and then told him we have a unique message that we share with those who are humble enough to receive it and if he doesn’t want to hear it we will be respectfully leaving and then we did! haha man I have changed.. a year ago my heart would have been pumping and I would have been flipping through my bible. Now, if someone starts bashing us my brain just kind of turns off and we leave when they are done. It’s kind of funny.

Anyway I’m rambling now. Mardi Gras is tomorrow, I guess, so we will see what kind of fun stuff is going on in Beaumont. Hopefully nothing crazy happens. Love yall have a good week

Elder Viitanen

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