Monday, July 23, 2012 - "This is The Moment"!

Hola Mi Familia! This week seemed to fly by pretty quickly! So this week we continued to see the after-effects from the rain. We couldn't cross that little dip in the road because of the continuous water overflowing and had to ask the pick-up trucks that were crossing if we could hop in to cross. Apparently in Tucson they are receiving a lot of rain as well and it is all traveling down to Sonoyta and giving the Americans problems along the way. Apparently there are other roads overflowing as well before you cross the border into Mexico and Sonoyta. Finally about Thursday or so the water level was smaller and we could pass by foot! Crazy Stuff! This week we received blessings! We had made it a focus to begin helping the less actives in the branch and the members. We made it a goal to start teaching the missionary lessons to the members to help them remember what they already know and what they should be doing. Don't we all need reminders sometimes? And we have a TON of inactives and baptism records of people we don't know so we have been trying to find them and help them come back to church. It is really sad to see people have a testimony and love the church, but won't come because of members being rude or judging and putting on the "I'm better than you act". We have visited many inactives who just let out their feelings to us and I can feel their pain as they tell us of the way they are treated by certain members. It is really sad. I have been so caught up in the fact that we have been teaching these less actives that I have been distraught that we don't have very many investigators. And my comp doesn't like to contact very much and so we only have like 3 or so investigators. However, I found this week that when you help the members and the less actives, and bringing the "lost sheep" back into the fold, that the Lord blesses you for helping his children. We had a lesson we a reference from a Hermana in the branch and the lesson with this investigator last almost 2 hours! We talked about The Restoration and it was really good! Towards the end of that lesson, this investigator's friend walks in and is interested as well, so we get her address, but won't be able to visit because she is out of town for the vacations. Another little miracle, we were walking home and this guy and his family called out to us and we went over to talk to him and he and his family had talked with the missionaries before in Phoenix and said that they really liked the movies the missionaries had. We set up a time to come back so hopefully that may lead to something. Also there is this boy, whose grandma is a less active, but we have reactivated her, and the boy's mom is not a member, but he comes to the mutual and likes the devotionals that we have there. One day we stopped by and taught him about prayer and baptism and we asked him what he liked most about the church, and we thought he would say playing futbol at Mutual, but no! He said that he likes most the discussions that we have and devotionals during mutual. We invited him to be baptized and he accepted, so hopefully something will come out of that. We also began teaching a less active member who we referenced to us from a bishop in Phoenix. This guy's parents live in Phoenix and are not members, but they know they church has good people. This man has Schizophrenia (or however you spell that) and we went to give him a blessing before he went to the doctor in Mexicali for a diagnosis. We also had a lesson with him reminding him of covenants and the Book of Mormon and such. It is so interesting! He talks like kid almost and yet he is so smart and so willing to learn! So we are going to continue to visit him! Sad story! Our "Mama Galletas" as they call them left. A Mama Galletas is like the mom of the missionaries in the branch who is always willing to feed the missionaries and give them rides. We eat with our Mama Galletas most Sundays and she always has my favorite flour tortillas. She is a single mom who is in her late 40s and has two kids, one son who is 8 who reminds me a lot of Cole, and a daughter who is 18. Both of the kids were born in the USA and the daughter has some problems with bi-polar disorder and such and so they are returning to live in the USA to get help. It was so sad to see them go! They were our favorites! The daughter lived 15 of her 18 years in the US and so she we spoke in English all the time! Oh well, I will probs be leaving Sonoyta soon as well. Only 3 more weeks left until transfers and I will probs be the one to go since it is my first area and I've already been here 4 months almost. But we will see..... I have been thinking a lot over the past few weeks how amazing the things that happen the mission! All the experiences that I have had, am having and will have that I know I would not have had in my life, had I not come on a mission! It is crazy the people you meet and the things and experiences that you live through! I swear I have felt every single emotion just within the past 5 (almost 6 :) ) months that I've been out! I believe it is true what they say, that those who serve a mission will return more mature than their peers of the same age who did not serve! I am so grateful for these experiences that I am having! The joys I am feeling, the rough patches, and just everything! It is so amazing! This truly is "The Moment" as the song from Jekyll and Hyde goes! Thanks for sending for that little blip mom, for reminding me of that song! Those lyrics truly do describe the mish! This is what I've been preparing for, for a while and the time of my mission is come! I have also realized how much Mexico has grown on me! I used to say to myself "I would love to serve a mission speaking Spanish...maybe in Spain or the USA, but defs not Mexico or South America" and look what happened...here I am in Mexico! But I really have become comfortable here! I keep thinking about how tragic it will be to go home and not speak Spanish everyday and just the things I will miss...but Hey! What am I doing? I still have 18 and a half months left! HA! I've got a little ways....! But anyway.....I am a sensitive person who gets attached to things and people and places easily, I'm sure it will be hard to leave! I better enjoy this time while I have it....end of mini-rant! Until next time! Love and miss you all tons!!!! ¡Yo sé que vive mi Señor! Con Mucho Amor, Elder Joyner