Una Buena Semana [A Good Week]

Hello family and friends!

Sorry I´m late writing this. We had a zone activity today in San Bernardo and got back later than we had planned and had to run to our citas [appointments]. Don´t have a lot of time to write, but here is a couple things that happened this week.

This week we set a baptismal date with Jose, one of our progressing investigators we found several weeks ago who recently lost his wife. He has been coming to church regularly and has great faith that his baptism and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost is exactly the help he needs right now. He told us that since he has started talking to us he has begun to understand things better and we have answered many of the questions that he has been thinking about lately. Very amazing to see the joy and hope the gospel has brought in his life. We will be having his baptism this Saturday.

This week we also found a great older couple who are here from Buenos Aires for vacation Julio and Audelina. Very intelligent man, and they seem pretty well off. We found them when we were doing contacts clapping houses. At first they told us they were Catolico Apostolico Romano (almost everyone tells us that, because almost everyone is) but as we were talking they had all kinds of questions so we asked if we could come into their house and talk for a bit. They invited us in and were very attentive and interested in the Book of Mormon. When we went back for the next visit 2 days later they hadn't read what we left them to read (3 Nephi 8-11) but had started reading from the beginning of the book all the way to 1 Nephi 15 saying they didn't want to read anything out of context. We taught them the Restoration and once again they were very receptive and accepting. We invited them to church the next day... and they came even though it was raining! They stayed for all the meetings and participated in all the discussions. Julio said he felt very comfortable, and Audelina was super excited that she had learned something new about the Fall of Adam and that "they weren't just awful sinners after all like they teach in my church". We just finished a lesson with them where we taught the whole plan of Salvation which they understood really well. They always ask GREAT questions, and they have told us many times that these things just feel and seem right. Tonight we told them that these feelings are the Holy Ghost testifying to them that these things are true, and invited them to pray and to ask specifically if what we are teaching is true. We also invited them to be baptized when they receive that testimony which they accepted. Julio said the closing prayer (his first time praying out loud with us, he actually was asked twice in church to say a prayer in the meetings because everyone thought he was already a member) and it´s always amazing to me to hear investigators pray and feel that they are really speaking to our Heavenly Father. We most likely won´t get to see them get baptized, but we are hoping to keep in touch with them as they return home and hopefully continue in the path they are in.

A couple other small things... this week we biked to the edge of our area in Las Toninas doing contacts, then biked all the way back to our pension on the Beach which was actually a lot faster than taking the Road and a lot prettier. :) I was surprised we were the only people out there as the sun went down. I finished the New Testament this morning and am excited to start Jesus the Christ tomorrow morning. I got my second opportunity here to speak in church and it went really well. I spoke on the family and had lots of great experiences and memories that I shared. :)

Anyways I gotta run now! As always thank you for all of you who wrote me and for all your prayers and support. I love you all and can´t wait to hear from you next week!

Les amo,
Elder Ian Wheelhouse