Elder Richardson in Guatemala: July 25, 2017 "tal como un niño se somete a su padre"

Tortillas: 16

This week was a bit crazy! We worked hard in our area, but we also went to a village called Pueblo Viejo with some Elders that are about 2.5 hours away from us in the middle of no where! There is literally nothing, unlike the villages in our areas with are close to the city, but it was an amazing experience.

That pizza survived a 2.5 hour bus ride on a crazy dirt road, then when we arrived the power went out, so we ate it cold. Was it worth it? For sure!

The Elder Sanchez is branch president there of a small branch of about 30, but these people are amazing.

Some of the poorest people I have met, but the richest in joy and in the spirit. It was great to see a new type of work in a small village. We also saw this week how the Lord lead us to more families that need what we bring, and to see the progress of these people as they read the Book of Mormon. We find many people who simply reject because what we bring is something different, but as those who are willing to open their hearts and as Christ says, those that have ears to hear, hear, they can come to receive great blessings from more of the Word of God.

Mejor Milagro:

There is a place in our area that we almost have no investigators simply because it is a bit far away for people to come to church, but we went one day this week by the guidance of the spirit to San Lorenzo. As we arrived, the visits we had planned were not home, so we decided to begin searching for more people to teach. At one house we called out and a woman walked out. We introduced ourselves and how as missionaries we had been sent to this house at this moment by Jesus Christ himself to being something for their family, and we offered to pass which she accepted with joy. We began to talk with her and her children and the first question we asked was "Jesus Christ send us here because your family needs us, but we do not know why. What do you need that he has sent us here to do?" In that moment, she completely opened up. She explained that she and her family had been passing very serious difficulties, and have distanced themselves from God because they have no church to go to, because of corruption of the small churches in the villages. She told us that they have felt in much need to come closer to God, but have not known how. When we testified and shared with her the blessing of what we bring and what it entails, she lit up completely. She accepted what we brought with great joy, and we are excited this week to return with the whole family. Not just that, but a councelor in the stake presidency lives mas o menos close to them, and their children are exactly the same in gender and age! God has been prepareing this family.

Testimony time:

I have enjoyed what I have learned by the spirit as I have studied the Book of Mormon. I especially enjoyed in Mosiah 3:19, which says,

19 For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child,submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.

As I read this verse and what King Benjamin taught in the rest of the chapter, I realized that the only way that we can become as a child and become perfect one day as God expects, we must know the manner that God has put in place, which is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is literally the way that we need to take to do what it explains in this verse, put off the natural man and become perfect in Christ. When Christ was in the earth, he taught his Gospel in its perfect and complete form, but sadly with his death and the death of the apostles, the fulness of the Gospel of lost. In our days we see that there are many people that wish to follow Christ and be the people that he wishes, but simply cannot because of the confusion that has come because of the creation of so many churches. There are so many good people that are blinded because of this sad occurrence, and we see them every day. It is the most amazing blessing as a missionary to search for the people that truly want to follow Christ, not a church nor a pastor or leader, but Jesus Christ himself. The Restored Gospel is for all people, and that is what we bring. We all look for this forgiveness from God for our sins. We all want to be the people that God expects of us, but in the world we life in it is impossible unless we know exactly how, and that is what Jesus Christ himself taught. I love my Saviour so much, and I am so grateful that he came down and gave his life for me. I am so grateful that he redeemed for my sins, and yours, and all of ours. I know that the gospel has been Restored through Joseph Smith in our days without a doubt. I know that the Book of Mormon is true, and as we study its words we learn the will of God for us and how to become clean every day. Of this I testify in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, Amen.