What a historic weekend! What an amazing conference! What an amazing outpouring of God's Spirit to us! I am still feeling the lingering effects of it, which I hope stay with me for a long time! I loved this conference, and the Easter! It was all the missionaries could talk about for the last 3 days, the power of President Nelson, the changes in the church, the spirit we felt. It was really amazing!
This week, other than the conference weekend, was pretty alright. We are moving forward slowly with our investigators. I don't know why, but several are going out of town and we had to start looking for a lot of new ones again. Perhaps I am still a little used to the work in Alto Hospicio or Antofagasta, but here everything just feels slower, harder. But, I keep working. My comp is doing alright, just going along. He doesn't say much... or do much, unless I tell him to do it, or ask him something to start him up. Which is ok, I guess. But when days come where it's harder to get animated, that doesn't help. But oh well! He is still an awesome guy! And obedient. That's all I can ask for.
Barbara and Michelle are progressing, and this week we will have their baptismal interview, and hopefully, their baptism! She came to conference yesterday and loved it. And all of the sudden, she was introducing me to a bunch of people there, saying, ''Hey look! This is my Aunt and Uncle, this is my cousin, this is my... etc.'' Apparently she has a ton of family members! What the deuce?! She needs to get baptized! Haha but she loved the conference, and was talking about how she understands now really what it means to have a prophet, which is amazing. It is hard to explain really the importance of having a modern prophet to someone who has never heard of him until they actually listen to them. And with the spirit of this conference.... well, it's impossible not to have a testimony of Nelson being a prophet! Nobody else is really progressing, honestly. Which is rough, because we've been in this dry spell here for far too long. But one can only keep moving forward with the knowledge that the hard work is never for nothing.
So conference... conference was absolutely amazing! I have never felt anything so special before! I honestly had forgotten what a solemn assembly was like, and so I was a little confused at first of why President Oaks was having people stand up like that. But as we were standing all together as a church with our arms held up sustaining our new prophet, testifying to God of our acceptance of him and willingness to follow him, I felt the biggest testimony of the spirit telling me that this man was called of God, that this man will lead me to Him, that this man is chosen. I have never felt anything so powerful! The unity I felt with my church as I did it was also amazing! All of us! At the same time, showing our God our willingness to obey and follow Him! How can we not feel the Spirit?! I testify wholeheartedly that President Russell M Nelson is a prophet of God, and it is through him that God will speak to the world while he lives still on Earth. I know it because God told me that it is so. I loved the solemn assembly, and will remember it forever. The rest of the conference was just as special. I heard that this was the first time topics were assigned to all the speakers (actually, I think you told me, or no? Mom?). It was very interesting to see several common themes throughout the speakers, including: Unity, purpose and blessing of having a prophet, and walking the covenant path. What do you all think of the significance of that, the covenant path? Why do you think that very specific phrase was repeated so much? Food for thought. But some talks that stuck out to me most were that by Lynn Robbins talking of failures, and Massimo de Feo's talk of Love. I liked Robbins explaining how success comes of not only moving between failures, not losing enthusiasm, but also growing in between failure and failure. And I liked de Feo's explanation of the different forms of love we can give and receive in this life, and the commandment of loving God and loving others. It was something that I had been thinking of a lot this week. Those, among many others, touched me this conference. But then there are the changes that Nelson made this conference! Wow! Ciao, visiting and home teachers! Can you believe it? But I love the replacement. Ministering. How interesting. I believe this new form of working in between members is going to work very well. I testify of that as well, that that is the most important thing we can do as a member of the church of Christ: helping and strengthening others. More important than any calling, or any blessing, is the chance to be a tool in God's hand for an individual person, and growing together with that person to come to Christ. I love this new idea of ministering, because it seems more personal! Before, I feel like a lot of people were just checking a task off a list by going and home teaching or visiting teaching. Now, it's something more real, more personal, with much more love. We will grow together so much as a ward with this new way of working! I am so excited! And yeah, ciao High Priest quorumn. I'll be meeting in the same room as Dad when I get back! ;)
The day before the conference, I was thinking a lot about my task as a missionary. I was thinking a lot, actually, of the movie ''The Other Side of Heaven''. I was actually confused... how could a Disney Movie capture what it means to be a successful missionary more than a lot of people I've met here. More than I have! I was thinking a lot of how I could change the way I interact with the people here to be a real missionary. Before, my only intention was talking in such a way and saying certain things so that this person with whom I was talking would get baptized. I change that now. I was thinking of how much greater my calling is! How much joy I'm missing out on, and how much joy and blessings I am keeping from the people here by preaching as I am! I need to change! And so I began to apply it, and there was a new fire in the way I was talking, and acting as a missionary with my investigators. My leaders will be a little upset now becasue I don't have as many baptismal dates, but I feel like now I am making a bigger difference in the way I teach. And that was after just a few days of teaching like this! The conference went hand in hand with how I was changing. Especially with the new Ministering. It is more personal, more out of love, than just completing with a standard. I love it! And I testify of this change, even though I can't really participate right now. I testify, because in my own way, I have felt it, the blessing of acting that way. I am so excited for this! And for this week, to see if my fire keeps going!
But anyways, that's my week. I have so much more I can write... but not enough time. It sufficeth me to say... that was a dope conference! Have a good week!
Les amo a todos!
Elder Schmid
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