It has been a very hot week. I feel the skin on my back starting to burn a little bit (feels really dry), and I'm a medium-red now, but rest assured, I have (and will be using more) sunblock! My sombrero also helps (I'll see if I can't make it last until I come home hehehehe).
This week was a lot of hard work! We're talking with more people! And teaching more doctrines! Eating more chile! Echando más ganas!
I'm studying the scriptures, teaching with all I've got, and I'm working to make a larger sacrifice of the mission, and to achieve SUCCESS!!! YES!
One of my favorite moments from this week was an opportunity to hold one of my favorite birds. It is known as the Inca Dove. They're small little speckled pigeons that have red-tipped wings. They're small and everywhere, and when they're startled and fly off they make an almost rattling sound. We found one in the middle of the street, waiting to be run-over or something. It was wounded/very tired/very sad and had no fear that we came very close. Knowing that if it was left in the street much longer it would die, I was able to pick it up in my hands and stroke it. I tried to put it into a nearby tree, but it wouldn't let go of my hands. Only until I tried putting it into my hat to carry it did it fly away. It was really cool. (look up a photo they are adorable).
Here's a scripture for the week:
It's from the Gospel of John, chapter 6, Verses 48 to 60. Jesus is the one speaking:
48 I am that bread of life.
49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
52 The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
57 As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
58 This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.
59 These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.
60 Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?
I don't blame the Jews for not understanding Jesus Christ when he gave this teaching. Christ uses a lot of symbolism, and the heard hearted teachers of the time did not understand anything beyond what Christ literally had said, that they had to eat of his flesh and drink of his blood to have eternal life.
As missionaries, we're making the habit of asking: Why do we go to church?
We get a lot of different responses.
"We go to learn."
"We go to show our devotion to God."
"We go to sing praises and read the scriptures."
And these are all good! These are reasons we go to church.
There is a reason even more important, though.
We go to church to partake of the flesh and blood of Christ! We do it every Sunday. We do it for about 15 minutes, and in that 15 minutes, we remember Christ and his sacrifice. We remember why He did what He did for us, and how He did it. We remember the promises we have made with God, and we remember that we are imperfect and strive to change. We renew our covenants and promise to keep the commandments, and in turn, we are promised to recieve the Holy Ghost, the connection that allows Christ to be in us, and ourselves to be in Christ. It is the sanctification and unification of our souls with Christ! Is there any other gift we can hope for?
I miss you a lot, and I love you all! I hope that you are doing excellently. See you next week!
-Elder Bowlby
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