The loss of my big toe nail... :) (Week 52)

Well family,

Each week we all seem to be amazed with what I write and I am too! Haha this week has been so different, but so magnificent. I pray that the words I am writing will touch you and help you in each of your struggles.

So the day before Leo and Moises baptism about a week and a half ago, I felt a SEARING pain in my toe. And I avoided it. BAD CHOICE. I waited till Monday and showed it to my pensionista and she did her own surgery which hurt but didnt solve the problem. So Wednesday I humbled myself and went to the doctor. For my close family and friends, you know how sacred my big toe is in my family. It is practically a member of the family it is so big. So when the doctor looked at it and said, we are taking the whole toe nail, a part of me died. And I am a big baby. I am not ashamed of being a mommys boy. So she started with one injection of anesthesia, but because my toe is SO BIG (thanks Aunt Janet for always making sure my big toe was full) it took FOUR injections to calm the pain for the sucker. And it still hurt. I still screamed and was not happy. And there was one super important part that happened:

So the pain was not going away and the doctor was working on my toe and stopped the surgery and said the following: 

Look, your toe is infected and there is puss. The anesthesia doesnt take care of the pain that comes from this so youll have to get through it without help.
Dang it. I looked around. Mom wasnt there. No gringos were there. I was surrounded by foreign people. And I asked my companion for a pillow to hold and I didnt even have that. So I just grabbed the side of the bed and the only thing that came to mind was to shout really loudly the texts to I am a child of God and Families can be together forever. And so inbetween yells of pain, I managed to squeeze out a reminder that I was a child of a Heavenly Father who loves me and also earthly parents who love me. I know it may not seem so brave to have done that, but to me it was. I could have cursed God in English or said WHY ME or something like that. But I chose to thank God for what He had given me. And when the pain became unbearable, I cried in a vocal prayer asking for God to send someone to help me with the pain, and I didnt feel anything. and it was then I realized that the Savior had been with me all along. That he had sent angels long before I had asked him too.

I have thought so much about that moment. Sometimes we get so focused on praying for God to help us get through a trial or for Him to give us the help we need, but do we ever think that maybe he has already ¨been there and done that¨? I know that each of you is suffering, but are you changing your vision to see Gods care for you? 

More holiness give me,

More strivings within,

More patience in suff'ring,

More sorrow for sin,

More faith in my Savior,

More sense of his care,

More joy in his service,

More purpose in prayer.

Thats a hymn that I have read and sung many times this week. I see this verse as a step by step process. We have desires to receive holiness, and that leads us to have greater desires, but greater trials as well. As we recognize our weaknesses and sins, it gives us more faith in the One who can take away these struggles, and that leads to our awareness of Him in our lives, a joy that comes as we serve Him, and better prayers that come from knowing Him.

The day after my surgery I went to get my toe cleaned, and while on the way in a taxi, I spoke to a young lady for a good minute or toe (two. haha punny). I took down her contact info and gave it to the sisters. Last night as I was asking the sisters for how many investigators had a baptismal date, they said that this young lady and her mother both have baptismal dates. Ana was looking for someone to help her grow closer to Christ and she found it as I chose to see my life with Christ by my side, not just with Christ when I need Him.

I am fine now. I am walking well and we are teaching. I love each of you and I love my trials. I love my earthly father who was ordained an Elder 30 years ago, tomorrow. I am sure he was unaware of the trials that he would endure at that tender age of 19, just as I am unaware of the same now. But in the past 30 years he has continued to go forth and has done the Lords work, regardless of his struggles. And I will do the same.

For a dollar!
Elder Risueño

Take Gods Hand! (Week 51)

Hello my amazing family!

I just hope all is well with you guys. No big, but I did get to
baptize two people this week. And I only had to repeat one of them! My
amazing young friend Leo let his knee fly up so we had to do it again,
and I was moving him AWAY from the wall he thought I was dunking him
again and I was like NO! We have to say the prayer, too! Good teaching
time and it was fun for the both of us.

This past Monday, my pension loved me enough to make me SOPA PODEROSA,
a common soup here in Bolivia which is filled with vegetables and
juevo de torro. And torros don't lay eggs, so use your brain, people.
AND IT WAS SO GOOD! Big and good. And full of vitamns so they say. I
asked her to make it for my year mark lunch! Hahaha and for the main
dish? Cow heart on kabob sticks... How I love that lady! So delicious.

We also had the opportunity to have interviews with our mission
president and his wife. So its something super special because it only
comes once every 3 or 4 months so everyone prays and all that jazz. So
I got to my interview and the topic? Organization. No joke. Im just
super overwhelmed sometimes because I'm still super crazy in all the
thoughts I have and I cant focus and I still lose things and I was
just having a hard time. And then President gave me some great advice,
but for a time I could have SWORN it was my mother speaking. I wanted
to respond, Thanks mom, but I didn't because I'm not sassy anymore and
because I thought of that sassy remark AFTER the interview, Thank you
holy Spirit. But I am just super in love with life.

I really love seeing how much I am changing and how much I am able to
be a missionary even with weaknesses! Like, why would God want me to
serve him when sometimes I dont' even know what my investigators need?
Oh wait. It teaches HUMILITY. And it teaches us how much we need God
in our lives and how we NEED to pray to Him to figure out what to do
and where to go in life. And He loves to remind us how much we need
Him by giving us weaknesses! How amazing! We fall and hes like, Oh
here, take my hand and I'll lead you to eternal happiness. But
sometimes we act like two year olds and just sit there crying until we
realize that crying doesn't get us anywhere, thanks mom for that, and
we take His hand and walk into happiness. I love this verse from Lead
Me Into Life Eternal:

Father, all my heart I give thee;
All my service shall be thine.
Guide me as I search in weakness;
Let thy loving light be mine.

Guys, people ALWAYS tell me that I smile a ton and I'm like NO DUH! I
love God and I serve Him the best I can! I invite you all to do the
same. Just do the best you can and let God fill in the rest. If you're
too busy frustrated or crying or just being selfish, get on your knees
and pray. That's the best answer and only answer that'll bring you
everlasting happiness.

I love you all and I loved having a less active I rescued give me the
sacrament yesterday. Hes preparing for the mission now! YAY!

For a dollar!
Elder Risueño

As an Authorized Representative of Jesus Christ (Week 50)

Hello Family!

Happy Monday. I really hope all is well with you all and that you are
enjoying the warm summer weather in the US! This week has been crazy,
and I cant wait to share with you some of the happenings:

On a happier note, I found PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY this week! Yay me!
I shared it with my companion and we are both just so happy to have
our lives touched by such a blessing as a PBnJ sandwich!

So on a sadder note, Thomas isn't getting baptized. Well, not for a
while. He had a baptismal date set for last Saturday and he told us he
was ready and all that, but something happened and when we went to
visit him on Wednesday to see how he was, he pelted us with doubts and
stuff and it was a long lesson. I have never been so tired and so
focused on the Spirit to see how I could help him. It came down to
being time to get home and I just said a prayer and I told him, ¨Hno
Thomas, as an authorized representative of Jesus Christ, I testify…¨
and that's all I remember. I think that's all that matters. That I
shared with him that I had the power to tell him that Satan could
never win and would never win. That is what I learned. That as an
authorized representative of Jesus Christ, I had the authority of the
priesthood. Satan will never have that power and he will never win.

On a good note, we brought a FAMILY back to reactivity. They have been
to church enough, and have had interviews that they are no longer less
actives. We also are so ready for the two young jovens to be baptized
this Saturday! And we are filling out mission papers for the son to go
on a mission!

Just yesterday a sister came up to me and asked me if I would baptize
her 8 year od son this Wednesday. How special it will be, on the year
anniversary of my being set apart as a missionary, I will enter the
waters of baptism for the first time! And then on Saturday I will go
in again to baptize Leo Paocara.

This morning I watched a video that Ellyn sent me and she reminded me
that the most important change in our missions is OURSELVES! And that
is what I have thought about all this week. With the problems with
Thomas, but also with the joys of other people, I have to see who I am
becoming at the end of each day. Exactly one year ago today, at my
farewell, my good friend Rachel Lockhart sang the following:

I need thee evry hour most Holy One
Oh make me thine indeed, thou blessed son.

Guys, lets just reflect on those inspiring lyrics. What does it mean
to be made His? What kind of work does that include from us? I can
tell you it is not an overnight task. It is a lifelong task. It is a
task for eternity. But that is my deepest wish. That no matter how
many baptisms or rescues I have, no matter how high my numbers are
each week, that I am becoming more like my Savior. I promise each of
you at home that He needs us just as much as we need Him. There are
people to comfort, people to console, and people to save. And if we do
what He wants us to do, regardless of our imperfections, we will find
real purpose in our life.
I need thee, Oh I need thee,
Evry hour I need thee.
Oh, bless me now my Savior
I come to thee.
And happy one year mark to me this year. :)
Elder Risueño

DONT BLOW OUT THE CANDLE! (Week 49)

AHHHHHHHH!!!

You know that moment in Princess Diaries where Mayra sings Miracles
happen once in a while when you believe... Ya I definitely have been
singing that all week this week.

Some funnies:
Monday my COMPANION lost the keys.. NOT I! And so we had to climb in
the house through ladder and members had to help us. Love it! That
same day we ate chicken feet and chicken gizzard! I don't know where
the gizzard is located exactly, but yeah I know more or less. SO
GOOD. We also ate cow stomach!

This week we also had pizza from a great american place... thanks mom
and dad! And we ate hamburgers! so great!

I think there are more, but I forgot. READY FOR THE MIRACLES?!!

So we have 3 baptisms lined up for these next two weeks! Thomas is SO
READY to be baptized and he is excited. That's this Saturday... AND the
two jovenes got their parents permission to be baptized the 18th! A
MIRACLE! Fasts and prayers answered. They are also preparing to go to
the temple to do baptisms so I of COURSE bought some stuff to help
them get to the temple! I just want to be like THANK YOU EVERYONE AND
GOD FOR YOUR PRAYERS!

We also found a contact and we gave him a pamphlet to read and he was
kind of interested and when we came back he said that he felt that
his eyes had been opened when he had read the pamphlet and told us
then and there he wants to be baptized! YAY!

We have so many more miracles, but I am just so excited for these simple ones.

Now a quick story so the subject makes sense:
So we went to visit a family dealing with some problems and turns out
the power went out! So I was like YAY! TEACHING MOMENT! So we took out
the hymn book and sang the following:
The Lord is my light
The Lord is my strength
I know in his might
Ill conquer at length
My weakness in in mercy
He covers with power
And walking by faith I am blessed every hour!

How beautiful! So we prayed and then I blew out the only candle that
gave us light in the dark. The daughter got super scared and we just
sat there in the dark. And I was like How does it feel? Scary, bad,
etc. And then I told them that we are SO BLESSED to have the light of
Christ with us and that Christs light will never burn itself out, WE
WILL be the ones to blow it out. So no matter how hard our trials are,
no matter how crazy life is, we must NOT blow out that light. That
candle that leads us through the darkness. We cant progress in
darkness, and so we know that we always need light to guide us.

I testify that the light of Christ is the best gift the world has been
given. I invite you all to relight that candle if it is not burning
right now. We do that through prayer. And if it is burning, but needs
some more flame, we need to add some scripture study and church
attendance. I miss you all and love you a ton! :)
For a dollar!
Elder Risueño