Subject: Well this is a week of miracles!!!
Hello!
Well family, I am glad all is well! I was able to look through the emails. I am excited you got to go to a baseball game Hermana Delis. And I am sure you will do fantastic in two English wards as well as your Spanish ward. To cover that many wards is a real trust that the Lord and your mission president has given you and your companion. I am excited to hear how it goes!
Spiritual Thought: Wherefore, it must needs be an infinite atonement. Save it be an infinite atonement this corruption could not put on incorruption. Wherefore, the first judgement which came upon man must needs have remained to an endless duration. And if so, this flesh must laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother earth, to rise no more. ~Jacob the Younger Brother of Nephi
Well, on with the week! This week was a really cool and eventful week! We have been spending as much time as we can helping individuals be successful in their spiritual growth. The funny this is that all we are doing is helping people see the great opportunities that the Lord provides them. Last week we talked about setting a baptismal date for M------- and this week we were blessed to set two more. We set a soft commitment with L----- S-------, she is in her 60's. We tracted into her when I first came to the area. The date is set for June 23rd and we are praying that it all goes through. The other date is with H--- C-----, she is friend of the R----- sisters and that date is June 16th. We are very excited! There is another possibility for a guy named, J--- L-C----, we've been teaching him for three months. We think he might be ready because he is engaged to a member of our ward.
This past week was a fairly good week of studies, I was reading and I came across some very interesting things of how we can become better examples of the believers. I have been rereading the Book of Mormon again. I am in 2 Nephi chapter 9. As I read that today, I came to much of the conclusion that we are very much a people that must live a righteous life. And as we do, His grace is sufficient for all the children of men. His grace is truly a strength and a huge gift far greater than we can ever imagine!
This upcoming week is going to be a very awesome week! We have a lot that is going to be happening. We are going to be spending our whole week getting ready for an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, Elder O----. He will be here all day Saturday and Sunday. We are going to be at a wedding on Friday evening, then on Saturday we are going to be having interviews with President Y-----. Afterwards we are going to be doing our weekly planning and attend the General Session that evening listening to Elder O----! Then, Sunday morning we go back to North Bend and conclude the Sunday session and eat lunch at the church with Elder O----! This will be an exciting week!
I love you and I pray for you!
Love,
Elder Christian James Delis
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Hermana Kate Delis
Subject: Hello hello!
Hello, familia!
Happy today :) Thanks for your letters--everyone sounds great! Elder Delis--your area sounds AWESOME!! And an apostle is coming to the mission!! How Cool!! I'm excited to hear about it all soon. So so cool!
Well everything here is very good--VERY busy, but very good. I like being busy. We don't have very many investigators in the English wards, but the wards are so awesome--the English program is so different from the Spanish program. This little assignment has made me think so so much about the blessings that I've received from being with Hispanic people for the past year of my life. Let me tell you a few...
1. I have never met people with such great faith. As soon as we start up a religious conversation with someone who speaks Spanish, almost without knowing it, they just start baring their testimony to us. They talk about how central their Heavenly Father is in their life. It is so easy for so many of them to believe. I love that so much. :)
2. They are so grateful. As soon as we are on the conversation of religion, it takes like 3 seconds for them to bring up the fact that their Father in Heaven has given them EVERYTHING. They just believe in their Heavenly Father, and better yet, they are grateful for Him.
3. These people are so humble--and it's not just in what they have or don't have, it's inherent to the way they think and live. It's not a matter of material, it's also a matter of personal integrity. In their culture, humility just runs at their center. It's very special to be in a ward like that. It's very cool.
4. I like that so often time is not a huge issue, ha. At the start of my mission it drove me crazy that people were not on time to ANYTHING. If we set an appointment at 6, it would start at 630. It drove me insane. BUT, eeven though it is still better to be punctual, for me personally it taught me where to place my priorities. "My" schedule is not the priority. THEY are the priority. It also taught me how to pick and choose my battles. Should I get stressed over someone not being at their cita or focus my energy on helping them get over their word of wisdom problems? Does that analogy make sense? It also taught me to relax. If their not there, THEY ARE NOT THERE. It's fine. We'll just try back in two hours. Haha. :)
5. They are giving!! They have three things in their home to eat, and they some how manage to give me ALL three things in LOADS on my plate, and send me home with more. It embarrassed me at the start of my mission--I didn't eve nwant to take it because I felt so dumb--"PLEASE just eat this! I have my food." But I'm learning that it's how they tell me that they love me. THey just want to serve me. It is an honor to be someone they want to serve.
6. Their sense of humor is the best. Just a few words can be SO funny--they are a quick bunch. :)
I think I just feel so blessed that I've gotten to be so close to the Spanish culture for these months--I've loved it. These people are just so special. They have provided me with my personal humble heroes. I love them very much. :)
Okay, well I am sorry for the short-ish email today. But we have got to run. I think the laundries done and we gotta go. :) Love you lots and lots, and we will talk soon!!
Love,
Hna Delis
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