Preaching in Puerto Rico: It's been rough but we love the work

WEPA!!

This week was BRUTAL... but with a Spanish accent ya know, hahahaha

No but really this week was kinda a struggle for us.

Monday, all our plans fell through. So we went and found an old contact we had made like a month ago. They let us in and we taught them but it was one of the most unfocused lessons I've ever been in. The grandma was completely deaf and didn't understand a thing, the kids were nuts and the couple we were teaching just wasn't fully there. But, they said that if they received an answer, they would be baptized. So like sweet! We thought...

We had transfers on Tuesday and so we were out of the house from 8am until 9:30pm driving all over the island taking missionaries to their new areas. It was cool. But not an excuse for not having success in the week!

So Wednesday we went to an area that we had never been to before and began to contact. We taught a less active who apparently has a problem with someone in the ward and because of that, he now goes to a Protestant church or something. Although he said he knows the church is true. Long story short, it was a really long day of contacting and we didn't end up finding any new investigators. We were kinda tired walking the long trek back to the main part of town when we saw a couple walking on the side of the road like by the exit from the freeway. I'll just tell you that this is a really weird place to see people walking. So we talked with them and they were suuper cool! It was just one of those contacts where you just say "wow they seem really prepared".

Thursday our plans also all fell through! It was just turning into a rough week!

Friday I was on an exchange with Elder Bradford here in San German. And we had super sweet lessons planned but then in the end, nobody was home, the members couldn't help us, etc. Rough day.

But then we got to Saturday and that's when we really saw the hand of the Lord in the work! We had to leave for stake conference at like 4:15 to help present something in the 5pm session, but we felt that before we left we should visit a guy we had taught a week ago, but the second appointment had fallen through. And he lives far away. So before we left we made it out to his house and the dude was sad. Super sad. Turns out a friend of his had just died and it hit them all really hard. He let us share a message with him and in the end we had him smiling and laughing about a chicken! He accepted a baptismal date for the 28th of February and is actually married already. So we're hoping that when we get the chance to talk with his wife this week, that she'll be on board and they can be a little 2-3 week miracle!! I know we were told to pass by his house for a reason. I know he felt the spirit.

Sunday was also a really cool day for us! It was about 7 at night and we had had a pretty decent day, but we were in an area that was just kinda dead. So we continued contacting and then we remember a house we had contacted a while ago. It always smelled like cigarettes and honestly I didn't really wanna go inside... I judged pretty hard for the smell. BUT MAN WHEN WE GOT IN THERE TEACHING IT WAS LIKE THE RESTORATION OF THE GOSPEL CAME ALIVE FOR THEM. They understood the Restoration and the need for it so well. Jose, who's about 55 I think, was super interested and accepted the baptismal date for the 28th as well! Super cool lesson and I know now that God does not discriminate on any level! He want's all to hear the gospel!!

I know that the Lord guides the path of His missionaries and that He is preparing them to receive us. This is His true church and it is guided by a living prophet!

Quote from President Boucher about the struggling Mayaguez Zone this week "the island of Tortola, that has one companionship of elderly missionaries, baptized more this last weekend than the Mayaguez Stake."

IT'S BEEN ROUGH BUT WE LOVE THE WORK. We know that if we give it our all, the Lord will bless us!

Love you all!

Zack