Elder Richardson in Guatemala: January 26, 2015 email "Thy Faith Hath Saved Thee"

There are a lot of crazy dogs in Guatemala, most of them are not behind a fence.....

Tortillas: 45 (What will I do when I cant eat 45 tortillas in the states?)

¡Hola familia!

I had a wonderful week this week full of miracles! The biggest miracle is that this week Heavenly Father has blessed us with so many people who are ready to hear the gospel, it is almost like they fell into our laps! On the side of bad news, we found out that Tino Castillo is still married to his wife that he was married to 30 years ago... He has been with Odelia for 20 years and they have their family, but getting divored in Guatemala is really hard... First, it costs about Q6000, which is living wage for their family for about a half a year... Also, it is a very long, strenuous process. But, we put our trust in God, and we found a lawer who is not only a member, but also family of member that are here! He will be able to get them divorced for free! We still have the problem with time, which it could take up to 2 years... So right now we are thinking about having Alexander and Obeimar baptized with waiting on Odelia and Tino. They really need the gift of the Holy Ghost in their house, and with the world that we are living in it is something necesarry for young men like Alexander and Obeimar. Edilmar, husband of Hermana Patty, is progressing very well and preparing for his baptism on the 7th of February. Other than that, we are still working hard to have investigators progress, but it is difficult.

Mejor Milagro:

On Monday we were opening the church to get ready to have family night with family of Hermana Patty when a young man approaches us. He says that he has always seen us in the streets and had an interest in who we are and wanted to talk to us. We start talking and find out his name is Eleo. We begin and ask where he lives and if we could pass by his house this week to share a message, and as he starts to explain his friends pass by, tell him they have to leave and he leaves. All we got was his name and the area he lived. It was a little bit weird, but I wrote down his info and we decided that we would go visit him one day. So we continue on with our lives. Then, on Wednesday we were having a special Noche de Hermanamiento en Monajil for the birthday of Odelia. I begin to greet the people that had arrived, and I notice a familiar face, but I could not remember who it was. We greet him, and he reminds us that he is Eleo, and he had showed up with his wife and child! He is co workers with a member and that is how he found out where we were! We were so happy, and we set an appointment to visit him on Saturday. So, we go Saturday to meet with him, but he was not home, only his wife. We start to get to know her, her name is Jury. We find out that Eleo has a drinking problem, they have been having problems in their relationship and they wanted to find a church to impove their situation! They are very young, maybe 20 and have a son who is almost 1. Heavenly Father guided them to where they really could improve their life. We explained to her the temple and eternal marriage, and it was so amazing to see the look in her eyes. I am very excited to see where we go with them!

Testimony Time:

The title of the email is from Luke 18:42 and it says, "And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight; thy faith hath saved thee." In this story a blind man approaches Christ and ask him to heal him, and this is his response. Something I find interesting is that all of the instances that Christ works a miracle it is ALWAYS based on faith. I never realized, but faith is so so important! I also read this week about the story of Alma and Amulek when they were locked in Jail, and because of their mighty faith in Christ they were able to make the walls of the prison fall down! Wow! What I want to work on is increasing my faith, so that I have the faith to do whatever God wants me to do. I know that we can by folloing the example of these great men that we find in the scriptures. I am grateful that Heavenly Father has restored his true church and gives us the power to act in his name. I have seen miracles being here as one of his representatives, and I know without a doubt that this is his gospel and his true church on the earth. I know the power of the Book of Mormon and that the promise that accompanys it is true. Most of all, I know that Christ lives! I know he is our saviour and the only true way to happiness is to follow him. All of our questions can be answered through the scriptures, we just need to listen to the sprit speak to us. I say these things in the his sacred name, Amen.