Happy day of independence to Guatemala! Here they celebrate independence on the 15th, so on Tuesday, everyone was decked out in blue and white and burning fireworks. Mama Elida, who's the member that feeds us every day, made my favorite Guatemalan dessert, which are called molletes. Normally they only make them for Semana Santa, but she made an exception for me.
We also had a lot of opportunities to do service this week. I realized that I really love cleaning other peoples' houses, especially washing their dishes. I can only think of a few times on my mission where I've felt more joyful than I do while washing dishes. I'm not sure why, but I think it has to do with what King Benjamin teaches: when we're in the service of our fellow beings, we're only in the service of our God.
Yesterday our investigator, David, who got baptized about two weeks ago, got confirmed! I asked him how he felt afterward, and he told me that he had felt a force move through him. He literally received the gift of the Holy Ghost, and could feel the difference. The H.G. is something interesting that I've come to understand much better on my mission. It's not just a guide for us, but it's a constant friend, a comforter, and can also reprimand us (gently) when we need it. It's a presence that makes all the difference in missionary work, and oddly enough, I've never been able to feel the spirit so much as I have in this area. Our lessons are few, but they are so spiritual. They are also exhausting--following the promptings of the spirit, and feeling it strongly, can really take a lot out of you.
I read King Benjamin's address this week, and I was reminded of the need we have to do things according to the strengths and abilities that God has given us. Sometimes I want to do more than is possible for me to do, and it's frustrating that I don't have the capability. But God has given us the gifts and powers that we need to have, and we cannot desire more or less than what he has given us:
And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order. (Mosiah 4:27).
Trust in the talents and abilities you have, and don't get disanimated when things don't go the way you think! Heavenly Father knows exactly what we need, and in his own time and his own way, he will give it to us.
Love,
Sister Campbell
