Well here we are again, another week down and 3 MORE PEOPLE IN THE GATE!!! Arlene, Colleen, and Dhan Guanlao were baptized and confirmed this past week. Elder Freeman and I found them last transfer and it was kind of up and down at times, but I'm glad we stuck with them, because they were willing to repent and enter the waters of baptism. I made mashed potatoes this week, like a huge pot. #IDAHOELDER. Something I studied though was in Acts with the conversion of Saul, who was later called Paul. It is a comfort to know that even in the times of the early day saints, there were still people that didn't accept the gospel, or even believe in Jesus Christ. As a missionary, and as a member in general, it's not our responsibility to force people to believe, because that'll never work. Our responsibility is to share and to invite others to come to Christ, being an example to others and lifting where we stand. We shouldn't get discouraged or give up, because that's what the adversary wants. We have to keep going and growing along the way, no matter the challenges that come. And when we fall, there's always someone there to help us up and dress our wounds; The Savior. Anyways, hope everyone has had a good week, Thank you all for the love and support!
p.s. I forgot my card reader, so no pictures this week for all you "scRoLl tO ThE botToM foR tHe PicTurEs" people
With love, Elder Banister
Hello from the Philippines
A lot happened this week, let's give a recap
Elder Kaufusi had his birthday, the sisters surprised him with some gifts because they're so awesome and we had one of the best meals so far in the mission, marinated chicken and real MASHED POTATOES
We did some service planting corn as a district
We had a ministering activity with the ward and I think it was pretty successful
We went on a bike ride this morning and a lot of things broke, even my handlebars, so that was fun
That was about it I guess, not too much. But I got some good pictures, so that's a plus. Something that really helped me this week was actually this thing called companionship inventory. It's basically where you help you companion to grow and improve. We actually call it a "Do Batter, Be Better" moment now, from President Russell M. Nelsons talk in this past Priesthood session (Elder Kaufusi's idea). But usually it's not that productive, just kind of passed over. This past time though, I don't know why, but it seemed like some spiritual bricks fell on me, bricks to use and strengthen some things. But yeah, even without someone actually there saying things out loud, there's always a companion that can help strengthen you; the Holy Ghost. Even a personal inventory with real intent to get better can be strengthening. I think as we do this, we will really press down on the accelerator on our journey to reach our potential. And that's the week. Thank you all for your love and support! Here's some pics to make up for the weeks I didn't send any.
Elder Banister
