Hola Familia, HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!! This week was tough but awesome! As missionaries, we sometimes come up with creative terms to describe situations that happen frequently on a mission but less so in non-missionary life. Our word of the week is ‘internigator,’ which means a person who is so set on their existing, internal beliefs that they don’t want to accept anything new. We went to visit an internigator who felt that the Book of Mormon did not come from God. Nothing we said or shared could convince him otherwise. Sometimes, our words fall on deaf ears; and in this case, we did not feel like our time was being well spent. As missionaries, we choose how we spend our precious time and after testifying of Gospel truths and sharing related scriptures, we allow the recipient the opportunity to accept or reject what we have to share. Sometimes people are not ready to hear our words, and perhaps more time will help them become more ready. So we decided to drop this ‘internigator’ and focus our time elsewhere. Having done so, we felt a little bad because we weren’t sure who we could teach next. Going from something to nothing is difficult so we had faith that we had made the right decision.

The next day, we were pleasantly surprised that three new investigators attended Church. It was amazing to see these people choose to come and receive more light in their lives! One of the Investigators that came felt so strongly about Testimony Meeting (on the first Sunday of each month, the members take turns voluntarily bearing their testimonies instead of a typical Sunday meeting with assigned speakers) that he asked: “Where can I get a Book of Mormon?” Naturally, we were able to help him, and I gained a greater appreciation into my purpose for being here in Arizona. To meet people like this—who just want a little more than what they have—is a remarkable feeling. I know the Gospel as fully contained in the Book of Mormon has the answers to life’s important questions – Where did I come from? What is my life’s purpose? And what is my end destination?

So now we have someone to teach who accepts that God directed the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. I am excited for this new teaching opportunity! We look forward to our discussions with this man later this week to share who God is and how much He cares about His children here on earth.

As a side note, New Years was a bit tough for me though because at all other time in my life, I have celebrated with family parties up past midnight. Of course, mission rules are different. My president required all missionaries in the mission to be in their apartments by 7:00p. We would have like to go party with all the other missionaries. To everything, there is a reason and in this case we were required to do this because of Safety Measures. I don’t always understand the dangers around, but I appreciate the rules put in place designed to keep us safe.

I am looking forward to this week because we have lessons set up and things we want to accomplish. Thanks for tuning in and will send another email next Monday. Thanks for the love and support you all have shown me so far throughout my mission. I love you all ❤ and wish you all the best start to this new year. 

Good luck to the start of this year!! ❤💙💜 and party hard mis amigos!! 🥳🎉

ELDER BALDWIN