"Not yet as Job...."
There's a song down here made by some missionary a while ago. It goes along to the "Now you're in New Yoooork" song, but instead its "Los Alcarrizooooooos, no vaya pa ya porque roooban!" (Don't go there, because they rob you). Just a little foreshadowing.
Wow, it's been a while since I've written, etc. Lots has happened though, so let's wrap it all up- this time maybe I'll even include a spiritual thought at the end?
Usually P-day is on Mondays, but this week it was changed because we had our temple trip today, which was really nice. I love going to the temple, especially after a hard couple weeks. It's really nice to just feel peace, love, and mercy from my Heavenly Father.... as well as air conditioning.
Like I said, these past 2 to 3 weeks haven't exactly been cake. I've been passing through a number of different difficulties- physical, mental, and spiritual. It's all a long story and includes a lot of back and forth (having good days and thinking I got this, then having bad days and wanting to go home), but I basically got to the point where I felt completely worthless, in the mission and just in general. I wasn't seeing the progress I wanted to see and the progress I knew other people were seeing. It's been rough down here in Los Alcs, but I've been learning to 1: Put trust all in the Lord, and 2: To love the people I serve. Working on those two things has been helping me tremendously.
Otra cosa, we had transfers a couple weeks ago- Elder Burke se fue, and now I'm with Elder Funk. We get along really well, I think. He's a very confident dude and likes messing around and making the kids laugh in the streets. He also has a lot of patience with all aspects of the work, which is great. He's pretty new to the mission, I'm his 3rd comp, but I'm excited to get to know him more. We've been making the most of Los Alcs, the good and the bad.
The past couple days we've been going "Job mode." Job is the prophet in the Bible that lost everything but still kept his faith. Last Friday, we ran through all our running water, which happens sometimes, totally normal in Los Alcs to not have running water. We were hoping to have water again Sunday, but, strangely enough there was still no water. No showers, no washing dishes, which means no fancy meals, and the worst part--no flushing the toilet. The bathroom has now turned into a porti-potty, and the smell is rancid. Ya tu sabes.
And to top it all off, just after hitting 16 months in the mission, ya boi Elder Barlow was robbed. That's right, I stared down the barrel of some dude's .45 as I fearlessly handed over my phone and the rest of my belongings. Lol, mentira. Not actually. We were walking down this dark alley that I thought was short enough to not get robbed in, when this motorbike rolls up behind us and this one dude jumps off the back and says quietly, "lo' telefono' lo' do'!" (Gimme your phones both of you!" (Here they don't pronounce the s)). I was so startled and baffooned that my brain jumped out of my head for like 10 seconds and I just handed the phone over and stood there. He tries to take Funk's imaginary phone too, but he just says, "I don't got no telefono my boy!" The guy, without demanding us or searching our pockets for more, got back on the bike and then rode off into the night. My brain returned soon after, and I realized the dude was new to robbing and that he had no weapon on him at all. His inventory was completely empty. This ticked me off a bit (an understatement) because we could've just turned around and ran and we would've been fine, but I was so dumb to give him the phone without thinking. Anyway, today in the temple I got a new phone and we're good now.
We spent the rest of the day today after the temple at the Agora mall, which was fun. We're currently on the bus going back to Los Alcs, hoping and praying that the water finally came back. We'll see what happens.
A scripture I really like, and one that my trainer always recited to me, was one in Doctrine and Covenants. This scripture is God talking to Joseph Smith as he was in Liberty Jail. He had been in this cold, wet prison for months, a prison underground that had a roof that wasn't even high enough to let Joseph stand up straight. He prayed to ask God why he was having difficulties this hard for this long, and if God was even still with him, and this was God's answer:
7 My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;
8 And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.
9 Thy friends do stand by thee, and they shall hail thee again with warm hearts and friendly hands.
10 Thou art not yet as Job; thy friends do not contend against thee, neither charge thee with transgression, as they did Job.
Not yet as Job. Meaning, he's passing through seriously hard stuff, but he still has things to be grateful for. I related this to myself in these last couple days and have tried to focus my prayers more on gratitude and have been seeing the fruits of it very rapidly. Being more grateful for what I have, as well as being more grateful for the good aspects and characteristics of Dominicans, instead of focusing on their faults or differences, has helped me be happier and more positive . I saw a quote on the bus today going to the temple as I was peeking over someone's shoulder that was scrolling Facebook. It said, "El que pueda cambiar sus pensamientos puede cambiar su futuro." He that can change his thoughts, can change his future. Amen to that. I testify that as we focus more on what God gives us- because he really does bless us every day- we'll start to see his hand more in our lives. He lives and he loves all of us, truthfully, without a doubt. "He that puts his life in God's hand will start to see God's hand in their life".
Anyway, that's all, thanks for your thoughts and prayers. Time to go see what another month in the mission brings me.
I must go -Elder Barlow
