July 19th, 2010
Hey all my loved ones!!!
I hope this email finds you alll in great conditions and high spirits. I have consistently been looking for comfort and understanding from my Savior for the experiences that we are passing here. I won't go into too much detail but there are events that the Lord puts us in everyday to strengthen our testimony and to test it to see where it stands now. I love that because I am becoming more aware of my strengths, weaknesses, and points to improve so that the adversary doesn't squirm his way into mine or my family's life.
First off, I forgot to let you all know that the Zone Conference we had with our new Mission President, President James McArthur, and his wife, Sister McArthur, was incredible. If there was ever a moment in that the Holy Spirit bore witness that a leader was called of God, like our beloved Prophet, it was present in that Zone Conference two weeks ago. Our new president is so humble and really showed his desire to put all of himself in the Lord's hands. He trusted us as missionaries enough to make himself transparent. He told us ALL about his life aand family and expressed himself the best possible with his Spanish (even though he hasn't spoken the language for more than 40 years!!!). President McArthur was a profesor at BYU and a psycologist with 10 kids and 31 grand-kids. He is 62 and has tons of energy and love. A little quirky but I LOVE his personality and approach to leading. He says we are his friends, not servants; and is ready to work with us to grow the mission. The 12 apostles and the CES have introduced a new system of training in the mission-field worldwide into 8 catagories that will better prepare the missionaries to teach better. I don't remember them all now, but to help us learn and apply them better in how we teach the people, we will have less large Zone Conferences and MORE mini-capacitations and trainings by the assistants and our zone and district leaders. They will start to apply these 8 catagories of training in the MTC in May of 2011 (when I can teach it to the newbies as a teacher there!!!!!!!!!!! Wooohoooo!) Our Heavenly Father is definitely showing us His LOVE for us how he is uping the preparation of HIS servants to save souls. I feel blessed to be in this wonderful work.
We are more focused recently on the importance of attending church to feel the Spirit of conversion with our investigators because that is a vital key to their progression. It is the same with the less-active members as well. This first half of the month, we had been announcing a temple trip that we were going to do with the Branch on July 31st and planned Temple Prep classes on the Saturdays but it hasn't progressed how we have liked. The members aren't showing the desires yet and need more one-on-one teaching. We've post-poned the date until further notice but I am committed to helping these Saints receive eternal blessings. It gives me an unexplainable joy to help others enter into the Heavenly Covenants that I enjoy today by living worhty and keeping the commandments. The missionary work has been somewhat slow this past week to focus a little more on the needs of the members and recent converts. Many of our recent converts didn't come to church yesterday and almost all of them are facing grand opposition from Satan. It is painful to me to see that, by degrees, the devil will try to bring us down when we BEGIN to change and better ourselves in the path of our Savior. Elder Osorio and I have pondered about what is to be done and we realized we have to fix the root of the trial: PREPARE LEADERS. I have interviewed various of the members that SHOULD BE leaders this past week to help them overcome their "stumbling blocks" and serve the rest. I hope that it takes an effect. We are injecting a change of heart into their souls and hoping that they nurture it by themselves. Despite many who are willing to be better, there is one brother who has slowly hardened his heart in the past three months and refused to meet with me to repent. Yesterday, I offered to help in the most loving way possible and he pushed away more. I know the Lord has called me to be a Pastor over a lock of His sheep and He is strengthening me in the most difficult moments. We cannot alter the agency of one but we can be an anchor or helping hand in their decisions. I invite you to apply the following scripture to your lives and ALWAYS seek the Lord's help through HIM AND his CHOSEN SERVANTS. God Bless You!!!
Mosiah 3:19-21 "For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.
And moreover, I say unto you, that the time shall come when the knowledge of a Savior shall spread throughout every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.
And behold, when that time cometh, none shall be found blameless before God, except it be little children, only through repentance and faith on the name of the Lord God Omnipotent"
I love you and wish that you are doing what the LORD would have you do. :)
Con mucho amor,
Elder Josh Boaz
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