May 26, 2010

Dear Family,


Elder Moreno and I are really excited because tomorrow there is a special council with all of the zone leaders and assistants. We have the privilege to have Elder Causse from the first quorum of the seventy come and speak to us. He will be in Madrid for a couple days I think, or maybe just one day, but we will be meeting with him tomorrow morning early, and after we will receive all of our pedidos and packages. Also, Elder Moreno and I have been selected, by the assistants, to represent the Madrid west stake missionaries in a Stake Priesthood Meeting. Elder Causse will be speaking again and will hold a practice ward council or priesthood executive committee. So that is exciting that we have been asked to participate. We will see how it goes. That will be tomorrow night. So tomorrow will be a big day full of meetings. We are also gearing up for the next zone/mission conference this next Tuesday. Every companionship of zone leaders (4) and the assistants will be presenting a 20 minute presentation about certain topics that President Watkins and the assistants have selected, that will help the mission progress. It will be in the format of workshops and you have to attend all of them. So we will give our presentation 5 or 4 times, I think...and all in Spanish.

Yippee. I am excited, because the mini presentation in the mission council a couple weeks ago went well and all of the zone leaders liked it. But wish us luck. Our topic is...Dejar para bautizar. And we are talking about the need to drop investigators more frequently, those who are not progressing, and some of the best ways to do it, as well as certain situations where it is hard to do so. We are excited and just about ready.

This week has been crazy. We had an exchange this Monday with the Segovia elders and Elder Moreno went with Elder Kapp to Segovia and I manned the area by myself, the first time with Elder Carter from Payson, Utah. It was a great day. Two new investigators and a baptismal date. I am not too sure about this baptismal date, it was mainly more just to see what this guys desires are, but he sure felt the Spirit and expressed some good desires. We will work with him, and he is only 18, and have patience. We think that he can do it.

We have a lesson today with an investigator called Andres who is a friend of a menos activa (less active), who is trying to become more active. The first lesson that we had with him on Monday was great and told us very honestly, that when he finds the truth he wants to dedicate himself completely to it. So as we teach the second lesson to him tonight, we will invite him to be baptized the 19th of June. As you know the goal of the mission is to have a baptism every month, and Barrio 5 hasn´t had a baptism this year. So we are really going to push for someone to get baptized this day and there are several prospects. The thing is, is that for them to be able to be baptized this day they need to come to church this Sunday and the next 2 to qualify. In this mission baptismal candidates have to come to church 3 times relatively close to each other. So this goal is pushing it, but we know it is possible.

I want to make sure that you all know that I love you and that I pray for you daily. Thank you for your prayers on my behalf, on the behalf of Elder Moreno, the area, and the investigators. We need your prayers. Thank you very much.

Elder Moreno and I were talking this morning about how we didn´t always support the spiritual activities in the family. Like family morning scripture study, when I would get there late, or not even come sometimes. He told me that half of the time he made excuses not to have family home evening and the other half of the time it was his younger brother. We both shared our desires to return home, then with stronger testimonies, and be able to not only support these essential activities but be able to suggest them and make sure that they happen. I see the ever increasing need for consistent spiritual family practice of these activities and I can´t wait to be able to do them again with my family. I can wait and will wait but I will most certainly be a positive influence and not a negative one in the future.

Also, I just love reading the new Liahona. It is great and jam packed full of spiritual advice. It is hard to not understand the will of the Lord when you read and feel the power of those inpired and divine words.

I send you my love and prayers and hope that you keep smiling and have a great week. I can´t believe that I have been out for 11 months already. It is scary to think that I only have a little more than a year left. Wow. I need to take more advantage of this sacred time.


I love you,

Rob

Elder Driggs