Hola!
I could go on and on about the crazy things that happened this week... but I'll spare you the boring details and get right into the good stuff.
The Drop Lesson
So we have been working with this guy from Guatemala named Edgar for about a month now. He is a SUPER awesome guy. He is so energetic and happy and he loves talking about the gospel. Particularly the bible. At first, we were really excited to teach him. During our first lesson he asked us about literally everything. We talked about tithing, the law of chastity, the word of wisdom, you name it. The next day he called us and asked if we could come back and teach him more! So we did! After the first couple lessons though, our outlook seemed to change. He refused to read the Book of Mormon, and our lessons changed from being centered on the restored gospel to him trying to teach us about the bible. He'd quiz us on scriptures and ask if we knew random stories and he'd go "preacher mode" and wouldn't let us get a word out. Whenever we'd get one of his questions right, he'd clap his hands and say "aplauso para ti!!!" (applause for you). He'd say things like "It embarasses me that 3 young girls are teaching me the gospel, when really I, a grown man, should be the one teaching you." He couldn't seem to get passed that. So, when he asked us to come back over, we decided to bring a friend, Brother Bechtold, from our church. Someone Edgar wouldn't belittle so much. He served his mission in Argentina, got a degree in Spanish, and now he's a doctor. As soon as we got inside, Edgar says something like, "Most people don't know anything about the history of their church. Do you know the history of yours?" Great question! We taught him the restoration and shared the first vision of Joseph Smith. The spirit was so strong during the first vision that it was almost tangible. I know he felt it. We think it scared him because he interrupts us and said, "Your faith exalts Joseph Smith! You worship him more than you worship God!" The best part of the lesson is when he bluntly says, "When you guys come back, you are not allowed to talk about Joseph Smith ever again!" I could literally feel my fists curling but I held back my annoyance at his comments. Brother Bechtold calmly explains that Joseph Smith was a prophet, an instrument in God's hands, and he had the exact same authority as Moses, or Paul, or any of the other prophets in the bible! He was so patient with Edgar and that opened my eyes so much. We left the lesson and Brother Bechtold shook his hand and said, "Edgar, read the book. And pray. That's all we ask. Call us when you do." After the lesson I was still a little heated about how hard hearted Edgar was. But looking back, I learned so much about how Brother Bechtold reacted. Patiently, lovingly, and with simple testimony. That's the only way we'll get anywhere with difficult people like this. We have to act like the Savior acted and treat them with love, even if they don't seem to understand.
Well, I hoped to share more about this week but that story was really long. But one awesome thing is ROBERTO PASSED HIS BAPTISM INTERVIEW!!!! He is getting baptized this Saturday! We are so excited and proud of all of his progress. Also, we had interviews with our President this week and this was my last one ever!!!! I can't believe it. He gave me a priesthood blessing afterward and it was really special. I'm so thankful for the special experiences and relationships I've created on my mission. I will never be the same because of them.
This week we also had an AMAZING Stake Conference with Lynn G Robbins from the 70. It was so special. My favorite part was when he talked about resilience. He talked about how more and more youth in this generation lack resilience and tend to give up when life gets too hard and overwhelming. He mentioned that to become more resilient we have to go through hard things. We have to fall and fail and be lost. Hard times and trials give us the opportunity to use Christ's Atonement to become better and stronger. We can't always resort to taking the "easy way out." We'll never learn or become stronger if we don't face opposition and make mistakes sometimes. I'm so thankful for Christ and His Atonement because through Him, I can try again EVERY day, despite my failures the day before.
Love you all!!! <3
-Hermana Hansen
Pictures: Apparently we literally took none this week. So here's a picture of the pumpkin I carved last P-day haha
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