Tuesday, April 25, 2017

Miracles in the Storm!

Hello Everyone!
Wow this week has been crazy long! It has rained every single day of this past week. And not a light rain, a rain that gets you wet even if you have an umbrella. I felt like my umbrella was just a paper bag blowing around in the wind. No joke it was raining sideways!! I don't even know how it is possible but it was! Maybe it has something to do with because we are at the center of the earth and gravity, and physics, and e=mc2... Yeah I have no idea. Only in Ecuador.... But this week was full of miracles and full of opportunities to get better! My Spanish is getting a whole lot better. Talking in Spanish a full 24 hours 7 days a week actually really helps! haha I almost feel bad for the Latinos that have to deal with us gringos because it seems to me I am always asking the same question on how to say something... But thank goodness for patience and the Gift of Tongues. This week I have experienced the gift of tongues a lot. As missionaries, we have this strategy called  pin-pon where we talk for 2 or so minutes then pass it on to our companion. That way we can both talk and it doesn't get too boring for the investigator or us. We had a lot of lessons this week consisting of unmarried people teaching them about the Law of Chastity. I feel that my companion could do all the teaching because he is honestly a great teacher. Given he does have 23 months! So it must be frustrating for him to have a companion that hardly knows anything haha. But I am trying! But when he would pass it on to me, I honestly would have no idea what to say. I would pause for what it seemed like 5 minutes but probably only 2 or 3 seconds and try to listen to the spirit. Annnnnd nothing would come to my mind!!!! So I would just open my mouth and it seemed the words would just flow. It was pretty amazing. It is a real testimony to me of faith. That I need to just open my mouth! To trust that Heavenly Father will come through for me and bless me with the spirit because I am worthy of it and did the work beforehand. When I look back, I really love how Heavenly Father didn't give me the inspiration until after I opened my mouth and started talking. Heavenly Father always works in that way. He expects us to have the faith first and do the action, and then He will come through! Ether 12:6 "And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith."

So another miracle that happened was it was raining super hard. Hardest I have ever seen it rain here. I thought my umbrella was going to break. But it didn't thank goodness! We were on divisions and I was with another Elder who doesn't have an umbrella so we had to share one. hahaha I bet it looked funny....2 white guys sharing a little umbrella, getting soaked. But anyways it was raining super hard. Our appointment fell through so we were stuck outside. We thought hey what better way to access the pity of Ecuador by knocking on their doors and try to share a message on the street so they would just let us in!! So we tried doing that and no one was answering their doors or would look out the window and close the curtains... So we decided to shelter ourselves under a little overhead thing so we wouldn't get too wet. But like I said, since it was raining sideways, it didn't help a lot. So we decided to say a prayer that it could stop so that we could work. The rain didn't stop but it did let up and I am pretty sure rain started falling downwards instead of sideways so major blessing! We had another appointment far away and he wanted to contact up there because they never have before. So we took a bus and started knocking doors. About the third door we were standing there for some reason for like 5 minutes. We both were about to leave when a guy came out. We said our opening "Hi we are missionaries....." And he let us in! We were able to share the whole first lesson and give him a Book of Mormon! Right when we got in there he said the reason he let us in is because He was praying that he would be guided in the way God wanted him to go. And that's not even the best part! Afterwards we were wanting to set up an appointment for our next visit and he said he honestly didn't know when. Because he works from 6 am to 830 pm and the only reason he was home today was because the rain was so bad!!!!!!!! We both were like MIRACLE!! I will gladly stand out in the rain soaking wet if it means we were able to find someone to teach! It was pretty amazing. As he said the closing prayer, he said in the prayer that if this is the reason why he was let off work please help him to know this is right. It was a great experience. 

I am really so happy to be apart of this great work!! I know miracles take place when we look for them and when we do our part in working. At the beginning of my mission I wouldn't talk to certain people or knock a certain door because I didn't feel like I should. Or like I was being prompted. But I feel like those promptings and feelings come only when we are trying. Only when we put forth the effort because God won't give inspirations if he doesn't trust you. As I study more about prophets, the big difference is that they listen to the Holy Ghost and act on it right away. Heavenly Father knows He can trust President Thomas S. Monson. How I long to be trusted by our Heavenly Father. To have him say, I know I can trust Elder Reynolds to carry this out.... I am still working on it, but progress is always good. I hope we all long to have the trust of our Heavenly Father. Just like in sports, that when the coach looks for a player he knows will get the job done, He will look right at you, or right at me, and say GO! Feed my sheep. I feel this is the 4th quarter of the world right now. We have to give it all. We have to build Gods Kingdom here on Earth so we can all be ready for the great day when Jesus Christ shall reign as King of Kings here on the earth. Can He trust you? If not, lets all work to get to that point! I love you all! WE are all in this together! He needs every single one of us on his team! 
Elder Reynolds

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