Monday, August 12, 2013

The invitation to be baptized

Mission Leader Council



Hola Familia y todos,

This week has been absolutely insane, but WONDERFUL!!

This week has been really good!  It has been hard, but good.  We had a lot of lessons set up with potential new investigators.  About half of them fell through.  But those that we had were AMAZING!  We have 3 new investigators this week and I think they are solid.  We have a lot of investigators with a lot of potential.

And we are focusing more on baptism.  NOT for numbers, but because that is our invitation for those that we teach and because it is an essential ordinance for Salvation!  Elder Barragan invited us in District meeting this week to invite all of our investigators that we meet with this week to be baptized on a specific date.  We have invited about 5 people to be baptized in this upcoming month (september).  Nobody has said yes, but nobody has said no.  I think at least they understand how important it is.  We will continue to work with them to help them understand the importance of baptism, and to help them prepare for a specific date.

In doing this, I think it has really helped specify the importance, but I have come across a few challenges.  How do you know how long a person is going to take to be baptized?  I have been giving people baptismal dates, but I don´t know if they are the right ones.  I don´t know if a person needs 10 weeks or 15 or 3 to feel ready for baptism. So technically these people know that baptism is important and have been invited to be baptized a certain day, but I feel no closer to knowing if this day is right, or if they will actually reach this date. I´m sure the Lord will help me though. 

It is hard to know how to prepare them for baptism, because so many people work and can´t come to church, or they don´t work but they seriously have no money and can´t afford the bus ticket or whatever.  And we are teaching a lot of men, that we can´t visit and it is really hard to find members to come so they are hard to visit.  But I am trying to work with the ward!

Last week, I forgot to tell a funny story.  I was teaching english class and they wanted to know what sarten means.   It means frying pan but when I told them, instead of saying sarten means frying pan, I said sosten means frying pan.  They all start laughing their heads off.  Sidenote, most of the English students are men.  Elder Barragan was there and he speaks almost perfect English.  I asked him what I said and what was so funny.  He looks at me, laughing, and says, ¨Sosten means bra¨.  OH man, I was embarrassed!  But it was super funny.  A year in the mission and I still goof the language.  But whatever.

On the other hand, 2 people thought I was Spanish.  One guy from India, so I don´t know if he is the best judge.  But the other was a Spaniard.  She was a reference from a member and so we just set up an appointment by phone.  When we got there she went on about how the person that called spoke really good Castellano (Spain Spanish) and was super surprised to find out that that person was me.  I felt good, I do think my Spanish is pretty good!  I have definitely grown in the language the past 2 transfers.

I´m excited to see what this next week brings.  The mission is hard, but it is so amazing.  My passion grows every day, and I continue to dread the day I go home. 

Con Amor, 
Hermana Olsen

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