Hola!
ok. This is kinda weird, but I`ve been helping the people in my district this week more than my own area. The most powerful moment this week was with the kid I talked about last week, Kevin. (I think it was last week that I talked to him). Like I said, he`s a good guy. He`s been going to church, he`s been listening, and he knows this church is true. But he didn`t want to accept his answer. I trained in the district meeting about helping people recognize the spirit, recognize an answer by the spirit. I went to teach him with the sisters, and he`s an awesome guy, but he decided he didn`t want to get baptized, at least not yet (he had a baptismal date for this last saturday). The sister`s have been teaching him, but he hasn`t accepted. So I decided to interview him to see if I could help him out a bit. The first time I interviewed him, I helped him out, so I decided to try again. So this Friday, I interviewed him. As I talked to him, I kind of felt like I was talking to a wall. He was accepting everything I said in his mind, but was blocking it out of his heart. I didn`t know what was happening, to make him feel like that, but it was happening. He just rejected the answers that the spirit was giving him. He was doubting everything, doubting the existence of God, Jesus Christ, Joseph Smith, EVERYTHING! I tried to help him, but it just didn`t work. I couldn`t get through his wall. The only thing I felt to do was tell him to read the Book of Mormon. This kid is studying in college, and he`s super smart. So I didn`t tell him to read 15 minutes everyday, like we lots of times do, I asked him to read the entire book in 2 months. He said he could easily read it in 3 months, so I dropped it to two to make it more of a challenge. He said he would do it. So we finished the interview and I went home. I called up the sisters and told them that Kevin is awesome, and that he`ll get baptized sometime, but not very soon, and that they shouldn`t focus on him, they should be focused on other investigators. So that happened. I was kind of sad, but it`s the truth. AND THIS IS WHERE THE MIRACLE HAPPENED! On Saturday morning, we had a meeting as a zone. I was sitting there, waiting for it to start, and Hermana Sales came in, and went directly to me (one of the sisters in my district that is teaching Kevin). She comes up to me and says "you will never guess what happened with Kevin!!!" That kind of surprised me. So she tells me the story. Kevin had called them in the morning to tell them all this. He called and the first thing he said was "I have a testimony!!!" Kevin, every Friday night goes to his college and studies/teaches all the night long. But this Friday, after the interview, he decided to go home and start to read the BOM. So he started to read, and read super late into the night. He was reading, and just felt happy. He felt good! and he realized, "this is the spirit that they always tell me about" And he said that right then, he remembered everything the sisters had taught him. So he decided to say a prayer and ask a question and open the book to some random page to find the answer. (It`s something we teach sometimes. Say a prayer, ask the Lord for the answer to a specific question, and then open the BOM to any page and read until you find the answer.) So Kevin did that. I don`t remember what chapter he read, but it talked about how all the sinners need to repent. As he read it, he felt bad for all of his sins. He didn`t know what to do. But then, he remembered that Baptism is for repentance and if he gets baptized, he`ll be clean! So he asked the sisters "what do I have to do to get baptized?" They told him, and now he should get baptized this week or the next! Hermana Sales came up to me to tell me and to thank me for helping him, but I told her, "Don`t thank me. I didn`t do anything. The Book of Mormon did it" That book is true. I know it is. I have no doubt in my mind that it is true, and that truly testifies of Christ. The book isn`t named "the Book of Mormon" That is a lie. The name actually is "The Book of Mormon: Another testiment of Jesus Christ" It truly does testify of Him and has the power to change the life of any person, if they read it with real intent. I`m so grateful for seeing that miracle.
Lately, I`ve been asking the Lord for a lot of help. It would be a lie if I said I`m not struggling right now. It`s hard, everything. I`ve been asking the Lord for an answer, and I feel like I haven`t gotten it, like Kevin felt like he didn`t get it. Kevin closed his heart to the missionaries and the spirit, and I closed my heart to the spirit. I don`t know why how or when, but it happened. And as I heard Kevin`s story, I found the answer I`m looking for. I need to read the Book of Mormon with real intent. I need to just dive into that book with all of my heart. I have been reading it every day, but I need to search the scriptures more. I know that if I do the same thing, I will be able to recieve an answer like Kevin did!
Mom - your week sounds crazy. You sound so tired that you put some spanish grammer in your english, and you don`t even speak spanish! you said "and on friday, I watch a funny movie with tasha" that ain`t english. that`s totally spanish! you must have been reading my letter and seen how I write! And if you haven`t sent me anything yet for christmas, I`d like to add a request. One, like you said, the conference ensign in english and 2, milky ways or red vines. a member that served his mission in california asked for them, and he`s my friend so if you could, it would be sweet. If not, don`t worry about it.
Dad - I replied to your question about that abby person. And Centerpoint is doing Jekyll and Hyde????????????????????? I``M SO JEALOUS! That is my second favorite musical, after Wicked. I`d love to see it again.
John - you look CRAZY in that picture. You`ve got problems. But read my letter and have someone that speaks spanish translate it for you.
Jordan - "Hey Sanka? Ya dead man?
Tashita - to answer your quesiton...read the story I wrote. That`s why I asked if you`re reading the book of mormon. Because it`s soooooo powerful.
Shaylee - I`m glad your talk was good! It was your first one?? I remember my first talk...it scared me to death. I`m sure it was AWESOME! Thank you so much for the letter!!
I love you all and I know that this church is true and that it is the only church with the priesthood keys necessary to be able to have eternal life
Love you all!
Elder Schouten
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