Pregnant Again [11/24/14]

Well, the transfer call came last night... Looks like I´ll be giving birth tomorrow for the 100th time. Haha I got a little break this past transfer from training, but I´m excited to go back to it. There´s nothing that gets me more pumped up then receiving some GREENIE BLOOD! In reality, it was what I was needing because this past transfer was brutal. I feel almost unaccomplished because I´ll be leaving this city again, empty handed. Man, I feel like Alma passing through this city of Jundiaí without baptizing someone. I´m going to return with Amaleck however, and tear this city to shreds. At least I hope I can return before the end of this mission. But for now, Eduardo stands as the only convert in this area.

Interviews with our Mission President were this week. To tell you the truth, I prepared almost an entire month for this conversation with him. I´ve been trying to understand the Atonement better because of the phrase Ch. 1 of PMG that says your desire to Preach will increase as your understanding of the Atonement increases. I´ll try to put some of my thoughts down in this email.

-Because of the many blessings I've had in my life, I have been feeling recently how I could look an investigator in the eye and bear testimony of the atonement when they are past addiction in hard-drugs, separated from a spouse for 1 week, or a death that happened yesterday because of the neighborhood gang. Yes, these all happened this past month. I thought to myself, how I could console a companion fighting to stay alive because of parents anti-mormon? A recent-convert of the ward struggling with a testimony? Or a young sister who wants to return to church but can´t seem to enter because of the memories her and her husband had in the chapel, before he just recently died?

-After a good conversation with President Perrotti, he looked at me and said, ´´It´s incredible, isn´t it?´´

Haha I was so confused. I was looking for a big, life-changing, miraculous answer to many prayers, type of response. Instead of this, he talked about blessings. He simply said, ´´Feel what they feel and then bear testimony of you feel... You´ve been incredibly blessed because of the Restored Gospel.´´

I don´t write this to ´´brag´´ about how awesome my life has been, but rather just to say how grateful I am. I have a testimony of hope for the future that others don't have. I´ve never understood why The Lord allowed the most important book of these Latter-Days begin with the words, ´´...having been born of Goodly Parents´´ but I´m starting to feel what Nephi felt. Being so far away from my family causes me to reflect often on these words written in The Book of Mormon.

With Nephi, I too was ´´born of goodly parents.´´ And because of these two parents, we have been protected and blessed, happy and healthy, united and strong as a family in these Last Days. How grateful I am to be your son. My life has been a 20 year testimony of the blessings of a loving Savior. How grateful I am to represent  Him for the second time around this holiday season.

I bear testimony as well that we are all ´´born of goodly (Heavenly) parents.´´ That the blessings of heaven are accessible to all those who love and choose to obey. I know that Jesus is the Christ, the Only Begotten. He is the Chosen One. And is the One I choose to follow.

Thank you mom and dad for your faithfulness. I hope the family has a great Thanksgiving dinner together. I wish I could be with you, but don´t want to just quite yet, haha. As Brigham Young told the saints in the late 1800´s, ´´Now is the time to Labor! Let the fire of your covenant which you made in the House of The Lord BURN in your hearts like fire unquenchable.´´ That fire is green, baby. And it´s in me. Haha

Abraços!

Elder Welch