We had a really great week this week! We talked to a TON of people and place several Books of Mormon! We're working on increasing our teaching pool so we can fill our days with more teaching appointments, and it's going well. We've been doing a lot of street contacting. We received quite a few phone numbers this week and we're excited to meet with a lot of potential investigators in the next few days.
We met one woman a few days ago named Helga and she just so happens to have a daughter getting baptized this week in the ward in the northern part of Tenerife. So that was kind of a miracle meeting her! She said she's interested in learning more about the church and wants to see what it is that has brought so much comfort to her daughter. So we're very excited to teach her! We had our first lesson with her this weekend and we explained the restoration of the gospel and gave her a Book of Mormon and she committed to read it! We called the missionaries in the north that are teaching her daughter and and they're gonna talk to her about supporting her mom with the missionary discussions. Running into Helga in the street was not just a coincidence. I know that we were led to her. I love miracles like this!
We met with Victor this week. He's the coolest guy. He's super nice and always offers us Coca Cola. He's an old investigator that was found in our area book. He loves talking about God and is very receptive. This week we talked about the restoration with him. The only issue is that he's blind so he can't read the Book of Mormon. So we're working on reading it to him. But he's such a nice guy and just wants to learn!
We got to do a cool service this week! There was an English family that had just flown in for vacation and they were getting off a bus and we saw them struggling with carrying all their luggage as well as handling a baby in a stroller. So we offered to help them carry all of their stuff. We walked them to the taxi station and had a nice conversation about the gospel. We got talking about the Book of Mormon and why we're called Mormons. That morning before we left our piso, I had the impression to pack an English Book of Mormon in my backpack. It was weird. I haven't placed a Book of Mormon in English since good ol' Torrejón town. And Elder Knaphus and I had been praying that day to be blessed an opportunity to share the gospel with a tourist. After we helped the family pack their bags into the taxi, I pulled out the Book and gave it to them. And they were so grateful and they said they're excited to find the missionaries in their town when they get home!
This week I had the opportunity to do a baptismal interview for one of the hermanas' investigators, Elaina, who has been preparing for baptism for several months. She's from Brazil and has lived here in Tenerife for about 15 years. She's the sweetest woman. I love interviews so much because I get to hear the life stories of others and hear their recently developed testimonies. I didn't know Elaina very well, but during our conversation I could just tell that there had been changes made in her life. She shared with me a lot about her experience of getting to know the church. She has developed such a strong testimony. One thing we discussed a lot was the spirit she has felt as she has been taught by the hermanas. She explained that sometimes she doesn't understand everything, but the things she doesn't understand are the things that have helped her better understand the principle of faith. Trusting in spiritual feelings is often more important than developing a perfect understanding of everything you learn.
One thing I love about the gospel is that we are always learning. We're not perfect. We are continually growing and developing our testimonies. Sometimes we don't understand everything that we learn from church, but as we continue to trust more in the spirit we feel rather than focusing on our worries, our faith and understanding will grow. Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith. Elaina is one of the most prepared converts I've had the opportunity to interview. The spirit during that interview was so strong. I as well left the room feeling very spiritually uplifted. It's amazing to be able to witness the changes that can take place after seeing someone allow themselves to experience the blessings of the gospel. I'm so grateful for the gospel in my life, and I'm so grateful for Elaina's desires to make a covenant with her Heavenly Father which will result in her achieving an even greater potential to receive such wonderful blessings from her Heavenly Father. After we finished, we all went out for ice cream. She was so happy and I could feel her enthusiasm towards her baptism. The next day however, Elaina had a very difficult trial faced in front of her. Her husband passed away the day before her baptism. It was very unexpected and has been a very difficult thing for everyone to handle. Though we, as a district, have so much faith that she will remember the testimony she has developed and her faith in the plan of salvation. I'm so grateful that she had the chance to be taught these things before this tragic event. I know that the plan of salvation is real. I know that this knowledge blesses everyone. The plan of salvation has brought me so much hope and comfort, and I know that it's the plan of God.
Well, I wish you all a great week! Love you all!
Shoutout to big brother J who turned 30 this week! Love you!
Elder Hendrix
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