MIRACLE

So, it´s finally happening again.  I´ll explain...


Wednesday, I got my new companion.  Let me first explain some back story.  In my first area, I remember several of the missionaries in my zone.  I really like Colón, and it was an awesome zone.  One of those missionaries was Elder Vega.  He was pretty tall, and honestly, really crazy.  I remember just watching him and thinking, "wow, he seems like he´d be a really immature companion to have."  I didn´t really think about it too much from there. 


At the changes meeting on Wed in San Pedro, I was nervous.  Nervous.  Almost everybody is to get a new companion.  You know me, jittering and twitching, and moving all over.  They keep calling name after name after name... where´s my comp?  Finally they call "Elder Vega...".  He stands up. 


"Elder Vega´s gonna be my comp," I said to Elder Baldwin. 


"...has been to assigned to serve in Nuevo San Juan with Elder Thalman."  I knew it!


Haha.  He might be my favorite comp so far!  A really fun guy, but we W O R K.  And that feels good.  I´m really happy to be talking with everybody again, and I can just see the miracles happening.  You´ve just got to open your mouth, and people will listen.  I´m learning a lot about the kind of missionary I want to be with him.


Saturday we contacted a guy who was just sitting on the grass outside his house reading the paper.  Seemed normal.  We talked for just a moment, and he seemed pretty receptive, and we started to get bold.  Elder Vega asked if he had ever read the book that was in my hand.  I realized I was holding a Book of Mormon, and I handed it to him.  He was immediately interested and was looking at it and skimming its pages the moment I handed it to him.  He said he´d read it and come to church the next day for sure.  We asked him if he´d ever been baptized and if he thought it was important.  "No, but I would say it´s really important."  We asked him right there if he would follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized.  He said he would, and we left.  It was a really cool experience!  I love it when stuff like that happens.  He didn´t come to church, but I am sure we can work with this guy to help him progress.


We´re working with two other really great families.  One is a reference from a member.  This member is a little bit like a little girl dispite her having four children, but that´s really normal for all the people here.  However, she is really helpful with these references, and this family is awesome.  We´ve got them to agree to prepare to be married.  Hopefully we´ll be able to help them accept baptism soon, but We´re convinced they´ll progress.


The other family is a street contact, they too are so awesome.  Immediately we met the husband and were talking with the two of them and laughing like we´d been friends forever.  It only took like 5 min to establish a relationship with Marisela and Bryan.  It was probably the most fun I´d ever had in a lesson ever.  We got them to accept to be married, and they are super interested, and seem more responsible than most of the people here, so their commitment to come to church means a little more I feel.  Such a cool family.  I really love them, and am just having so much fun here.


We´re also visiting less actives more diligently and working with the active members as well.  I feel like we are going to start changing this area a lot, and I know we are going to start baptizing a ton.  The fact that this area hasn´t baptized doesn´t mean we can´t do it.  To me, it means that no one has put forth the effort for a really long time here to do it, and now that it´s been so long, there are tons of people prepared.  I feel like we contact really likely baptismal candidates every day now.  It´s only been four days, and I feel like our relationship with the members is excellent, including our communication.


We are looking for a new house, because the water is making my skin break out still with a bacterial infection... so yeah, we´re gonna look for something better.  This place is pretty ghetto to be honest, but I don´t mind it.  My comps last area, as well as mine, were pretty nice.  His was a tourist site, and on the beach.  Trujillo.  The best.  Really really nice.


So yeah,  Elder Vega and me.  He´s from Nicaragua, and he´s totally insane and focused on baptizing tons of people.  Yeah man!  Also, he´s really tall and weak, so I´m taking him to the gym in the mornings... make him strong.  I just wish he could tell me how to get taller.  Haha.


This mission´s the best, and I´m super excited for the next 6 weeks with Elder Vega.  I´m praying that I´ll have to changes with him. 


I know that this work is changing people´s lives.  I am so grateful to God for the oportunity to share these things with everyone I meet.  So grateful for the ways I´m learning and growing, and for the relationships Im developing.  I sent out a few letters.  Thank you so much to those who have written me.  I´m trying my best to write people, but I really don´t get much time.  I´m doing better, so please be patient in getting a response.


I know that Jesus is the Christ.  I know that God calls prophets.  I can´t believe the power I feel whenever I listen to or read the words of our living prophets, seers, and revelators.  I love the Book of Mormon and testify with all my soul that it is true.  Let it change your life.


Les Quiero mucho!


Elder Kent Thalman