The Time Is Flying By - 2-21-11

Hola Familia!

 So this week was a good week! It is really crazy that I have over 11 months in my mission I really don't know where the time went. I still feel as if I just got here. Before I know it I will have a year and then I will be home. The time is just really, really fast here. But it makes me want to work just a little harder to make every minute count. Because I really wouldn't want to look back and feel that I wasted time because really my time here is very short. As I started, 2 years seemed like a really long time but it really is a very short time that i have the opportunity to be in the service of the Lord. I truly love being here. Daily I get the opportunity to serve the people and help them to come a little closer to their Savior Jesus Christ. Yesterday night I had the opportunity to work with a new member. We went on divisions. My comp went with one member and me with another. This man that I went with, Hermano Louis, has about 6 or 7 months as a member but just really wants to work and do his best to help in the work of the Lord. I was able to go and teach a few families with him. Because he doesn't have much time as a member, he doesn't know a ton about the church but I learned a lot from him. Because even though he couldn't teach some of the principle, he always relies on the testimony that he has. Every oppertunity he got, he bore his testimony and it was really great. And I know that his testimony helped those we were teaching. I know that each and every one of us has a testimony and if we just have the courage to share it, we really can lift and help other people. One of the other greatest things we have and one of the most powerful ways we can teach is through our testimony! I know this church is true and I know that through bearing our testimonies we truly can bless others. We were able to have a lot more success this week than the past weeks. The other weeks, we have had trouble getting people to church. But this Sunday, we had 6 invesigatores in sacrament meeting! It was really great. We still had lots fall through and not come but still it was really great to have 6 there and three of them, we are going to try and put a date for their baptisms this week! This week in sacrament, Yeny, one of the people that me and Elder Jaime baptized last change, gave a talk! And Carlos, another that we baptized, will be talking this week in sacrament meeting. It is really great to see the people you baptize progress in this gospel and to see their lives continue to change for the better! I am truly grateful for the atonement! It is a very great blessing that we have to know and be able to use the atonement in our lives daily. I know that as I see these people changing their lives, it is only possible because of the atonement! I have felt many times the help of the atonement as I have been here serving the Lord. There are times that I am down and things are hard, but always through a prayer and through the power of the atonement I am able to feel the love of my Heavenly Father lifting me up and giving me the strength to push on. I know the atonement is real and I know that as we commit sins or make wrong decisions, we can repent and use the atonement to feel those burdens lifted from us and feel clean and happy again! I hope that all is going well for all of you back at home! I am so grateful to have such a great family! And I am also so grateful to have this gospel and the knowledge that we truly can be an eternal family. This is something that a lot of people don't know and it makes a lot of people very sad because they don't think that they will ever see their family again. But we know that we can have an eternal family! It's something I always love to teach because just knowing that brings so much happiness to so many people! We are truly blessed to have this gospel in our lives! I love you all so much !  I pray for you all daily and I truly can feel your prayers! Thanks for all that you do for me! Love ya all!

Love,

Elder Despain