Muchas historias para decirles.
To continue with the patience story, it's really paying off. The Baez family are great. We pass by just about every day and they are never there, just when we are about to give up hope we find them and they tell us about how great they feel with the Book of Mormon. Then another week or 2 goes by and we are about to lose hope, and then he tells us of an awesome dream he had about baptism. And so on and so on, it's a roller coaster with them. We are waiting for them to move, right now the house owner doesn't like us so we can't pass by their house, but this week they should be heading to their new place. Please pray for them that we can always stay in contact with them and help them go to church. Since the dueño doesn't let us pass by, Richard goes with us to the house of a member to teach him there.. that's every missionaries dream. i heard some stats a while back on a study someone did, Randy take notes:
when missionaries work by themselves, they baptize 1 out of 2000
when they receive a reference from a member, its 16 out of 2000.
when they receive a reference and then visit them with that member, over 600 are baptized out of 2000.
and finally, whey they receive a reference, and teach the reference in the house of that member, more than 1350 of 2000 are baptized. That's the key to success. Teach people in the house of the member. I'm not sure when or where this study took place, or how accurate it is, but the fact stays the same.
I was thinking the other day, on average I find about 10 people a week. That equals 1000 people in my mission. according to this statistic, I could baptize 700 in my mission.
that. would. be. incredible.
Randy for your personal study tomorrow: DC 31. the hour of your mission has arrived.
I should have told you this last week, but I'm sure by now people have asked you 100 times "why are you serving a mission?" My first day we went around the room and everyone gave their answer, some said my mom told me to, because it's a commandment, to set a good example for my brothers, to help other people be happy, etc. All good cute answers (except maybe the first). Then our teacher replied, let me tell the real answer. You are here to baptize. Everything you do in the mission is to baptize. You wake up to baptize. You eat breakfast to have strength to baptize, You study to solve doubts of your investigators to baptize them. That teacher was pretty direct with us, but I remember it till this day. I'm not saying other answers are wrong, one of my favorites is because I love the lord. But it's just to make a point of why we are here.
Love you all, see you Monday at 4:30 Paraguay time.
smile!
Elder LaFaye
