Letter #31 05-06-2014

Hey Everyone!

What a week it has been!! We started off this week by doing divisions with the Assistants.  The best birthday gift I could have received from President and Sister Lapierre.  I learned a ton and to end the day we had a huge "sleepover" with the Zone leaders and the Assistants for my birthday.  I had a blast!! This week was my last with Elder Seethaler so we just tried to have a good time while still working.  It was not easy as he gets closer and closer to seeing his family.  We saw so many miracles and one of them was one I will never forget.  We have recently discovered a gold mine of prepared people living in the Old Folks home.  This is all thanks to our buddy Carlos.  One day he called us over and talked to us.  We ended up talking with a ton of people from the Home and we visit them frequently.  While in our divisions on Tuesday, I talked with Carlos with one of the Assistants Elder Silva.  Elder Silva is the one responsible for the opening of this area so he knew Carlos already.  We had an awesome lesson and Carlos told us that he wanted to be baptized and Elder Silva told him he could on the 31st of this month.  My comp was very mad because he wanted to see Carlos get baptized.  So we went back the next day and started to talk with him, and Carlos told us that he had attended 80 churches and he knew that this was the right one.  He also told us that he had a desire to be baptized this weekend!! So we called our leaders and asked and the next day they were in our area doing a baptismal interview.  He passed and we are so excited for him!! He is 71 years old, and can barely walk, but the faith that this man has is absolutely incredible!  We planned everything out and decided to do the baptism combined with the baptism of the Bogardins daughter Laura who turned 8 this week.  We got to the Home early so that he could get ready and we could help him to the terminal at his own pace.  We ended up just jumping in a taxi and heading off!  We finally got to El Dorado and then had to walk to another bus stop, the whole time with this little old mans hand tightly in mine so he didn't fall.  We walked slowly and eventually made it to the chapel.  We got everyone changed and had a great service!!  We ended up having to baptize Carlos 3 times because his frail little body kept floating up.  The 3rd time we had 3 people in the font to help him.  He left the font with the biggest smile and I could tell that he understood.   He knew and felt what he had just done was right.  It was such a cool experience to see someone who was barely 8 and someone who probably doesn't have that much time left here in this earthly state, enter the waters of Baptism and make the same covenants with our Heavenly Father.  We walked back to the bus stop slowly, and we waited for the bus there.  As we waited I walked over to Carlos and asked him if his feet hurt, he told me yes.  Then he said something that touched my heart so strongly.  In his soft, weak voice he said "They hurt, but I came and did what Heavenly Father wanted me to do, and it was worth the pain."  I was almost brought to tears as this little old man bore a powerful testimony to me in 1 sentence.  There were so many miracles this week and I cant wait to share them with all of you later.  I know this Gospel is true, and that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ truly are leading and guiding us today.  I hope you all have a great week and an awesome Mothers day! Thank you for all the birthday wishes this past week and for your continued prayers and support!!

Love you all!!

Elder Ollerton