This was a good week! We were able to have 3 investigators at our stake conference! Usually, because meetings are not in the usual building, people don't go. But we had 3 people come this time! Clesison came and is progressing very well! He is set to be baptized this week. I feel it will happen. He might have some little doubts hanging on, since his whole family is Catholic, but I know he knows that this is the truth! We are also working with Sandra. We found her a week or two ago, and she has done incredibly!! Usually there are little pauses in an investigator's progression, but she has taken everything in stride, and she really liked the conference! She has a date for baptism on the 20th of June! Also, Pedro came. He is one we have been working with for a while, but he is one that we have really seen change. He has come to church for the last 4 or 5 weeks and wants to be baptized, he is just resolving a problem in Fogo before he can be baptized. But he is doing great!
We also have been working with Zezino and Monica. They are really close to getting married, but I think they just keep getting cold feet. The biggest doubt is that they want to trust the other one more, but they are not working on it! In this next week we should have a marriage date, and everything finalized.
Something that I have really learned on my mission is the power of the Book of Mormon! Everything that we believe and everything we do is built upon the Book of Mormon. If you want to know that this church is true, read the book. Everything becomes so clear, and we have a purpose. We kind of live in a poor place. There are a lot of fights and gangs and just bad things that go on (last night there were two gun shots near our house). I look at these people, mostly the youth or young adults and wonder "Where are you trying to go in your life?" When you have the gospel in your life, there is no need to fight or to work for things that are pointless.
Also in this last week, it seems like every day I ran into someone that says, "I know." If you really knew, then you would do it. The gospel, I have found out, is not complicated. It's very simple. It's not always easy, but it's simple. The way I look at it, we are all fighting (ourselves) for a spot in the Celestial Kingdom. If you are living the gospel, you are promised eternal life, but not guaranteed eternal life. Yesterday we contacted a man and we realized he had some cigarettes. Normally, I don't contact by telling people to stop smoking, but with him I did and he said, "I will smoke this, and God will forgive me." I said, "No he won't!" and he got very offended and walked away, saying how do you know. The thing is, forgiveness is not something we get by chance. You can't just do what you want and hope that God will forgive you. Like I said, it is a Fight. You have to do everything you can! If you let up, even a little, you run the risk of losing! That's a problem a lot of members have here. They get baptized and then they get lazy, and end up falling away.
Sorry if that sounded like a rant, but it is the truth that I have come to know. I am so grateful that our Heavenly Father sent his Son to give us the "chance" to come back. I am grateful for Jesus Christ, everything he has taught us, and all the help and guidance he has given that we don't have to find ourselves. We just have to follow. Trust in Him, and I promise all will be ok! :)
Love,
Elder Naylor
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