Week 27 and 28 - July 24, 2023

I feel like it's been a while since I've sent an email.  Sorry about that, but it's OK because I'm back now. 

These past couple weeks have been pretty normal, nothing insanely crazy happened.  We're still searching for people that will follow what we teach and invite them to do.  Kinda a weird feeling, but after 5 and a half months of being in this small little area, I feel like I've spoken to just about everyone.  

We do have some people that are cool and that have a lot of potential to progress and make it far.  There was this one lady we started talking to recently, and when we visited her the second time, we asked if she was reading the book of Mormon we gave her, and she said, "Yes, you don't have to keep asking me, I love reading."  So that was fun.  We just hope her Evangelical mom doesn't tell her she's not allowed to talk to us (it's happened before with other people). 

Our main man Manuel is still going strong, he said he's still figuring out something (he won't tell us what) and then he's ready for baptism!  Hopefully he gets it figured out soon, I only got a couple weeks left here. 

I've recently been figuring out what does and does not bring me joy here.  For example, prayerfully working and serving and talking to people, I've found, has made me happy here. Whenever I want to rest or do nothing like Bruno Mars, I don't find myself as happy.  Every day, finding the motivation to work has been really hard, but I also ended every day with a positive attitude.

  

I'm so grateful for this opportunity I have not only to serve, but to see exactly how the gospel brings happiness and true joy into people's lives, including my own. I'm not seeing as much progress in people as I would like (the past couple months we've only had a maximum of three people at church), but I know according to the scriptures that if we "bear with patience [our] afflictions, [God] will give unto [us] success" (Alma 26:27), not only in missionary work, but in whatever we strive for.  It's not always easy, of course, to keep this patience, but it's what's expected of me as a missionary, and I know by the end I will be blessed as I continue. 

Thank you, everyone, for your support.  Send me an email letting me know how everything's going, I would love to hear from you!  Talk to you (hopefully) next week!

I must go -Elder Barlow