March 7 in Tierra Blanca

So this week was fun. We had some really spiritual lessons. We taught this one guy who's young, about 24. He was an investigator who was being taught when I got here, but we couldn't find him for a time, and so we stopped teaching him. When we saw him it was an opportunity for me to see how faith affects us in our lives.

He wants to learn about the gospel, but he works and studies on Sundays so he can't come to church. He wants to work during the week. (He's currently unemployed, and not for lack of searching.) He can't work less on Sundays because it's 500 pesos more money, and he can't afford that. He loves to read the Bible and learn about God.

When we saw him I felt that we should explain what faith is, and we did. We helped him understand how true faith has its works, and without works, faith is dead, like it says in James. Then we helped him understand how those works are keeping the commandments. Then we invited him to keep the day of rest. The spirit was so strong. It was one of the strongest lessons we've had. But he didn't have the faith to accept to live the commandment. He refused. He said that he knows that what he's doing is wrong, but he simply can't get to believe that God will take care of him if he stops working on Sundays. It was really sad. It helped me realize that true faith is obedience. True faith is sacrifice. 

I love what Nephi says in the Book of Mormon (my translation from Spanish): I will go and do the things which the Lord has commanded; because I know that the Lord giveth no commandment unto the children of men, save he shall prepare the way for them to accomplish that which he hath commanded them."

1 Nephi 3:7

Probably the most famous scripture from the book of mormon. Whenever we look at this, we usually see how Nephi wanted to be obedient. But I suggest that there was a motive to his desire. Nephi KNEW that the Lord would prepare the way. He had faith, and he was completely willing to excercise it through obedience.

The youth should save for their missions. Most of the elders that pay for their own missions here have super good ones. They approach it with a different attitude. 

That's pretty much it for the week. It's starting to get hot here, but it's still not too hot in Tierra Blanca. It IS hot, but not like, devil-hot level heat yet or anything.

Elder Thompson