The happenins en el Campo

Highlights for 1/6/15:

Highlight #1: So, fun update on the young man that was baptized at the beginning of May: Last Sunday I was able to participate in his ordination when he received the Aaronic Priesthood and was ordained to the office of a Deacon!! HOW COOL IS THAT?!?!?!?! :) It was one of those moments you realize "this is why I'm on a mission." It was so special for me, and I know for him as well! BUT IT GET'S BETTER! :) (Can you believe that?? ;)) Then this Sunday he was the first Deacon at church, seated and waiting for church to start. Then he passed the sacrament! Just to think that a month ago (about) he wasn't attending any church, and then to think that now he has placed his feet firmly on the path back to his Heavenly Father. It was a very special set of experiences :) :)

Highlight #2: Baptism. Another very cool experience this week...a less-active member brought her husband (who is not a member) to church last week. So we talked to them after church and set up an appointment for this last week. The husband expressed he wanted to learn more about the church, so we were pretty excited. But then every appointment we had with him fell...until...we got a call on Friday night from our Relief Society President...(I'M GOING TO PAUSE HERE TO EXPLAIN)...So the RS did a Baby Shower on Fri for, as it turned out, this less-active member...(OKAY BACK TO EXPLAINING)...So th husband was at the baby shower, but got uncomfortable with being the only guy...haha...so he had the Relief Society President call us to see if we were free to come talk to him. (MIRACLE 1) So we found the time and went and talked to him!! :) We started like we normally do, by asking if he had any questions or doubts to start out. This is when he surprised us BIG TIME, he replied, No not really, just what do I have to do to be baptized, I want to be baptized. Umm, hmmm, what, WHAT? Me and my comp looked at each other to comfirm the other had heard the same thing. Then into the explanation we went :) It was awesome, very unexpected (I don't know why because we are on the Lord's errand and He can do anything...nothing should be "unexpected") and we are all VERY happy :) :)

Highlight #3: Food. Yep, the highlight you all wait for every week ;) haha :) But for real! :) So this week's highlight isn't something new I tried, just something I haven't commented on before :) It is called a Torta Mexicana...think a meat lovers pizza stuffed into a toasted hogi roll! Now I thought that might not sound all that appealing, but it is! :) So, I learned how to make them, somewhat/one style, so that I can make them when I get home :) :) You don't know what is coming, or what you've been missing in your life ;) haha :)

Torta...mmmmm!

Another experience from this week, me and my comp for companionship study did what is called a role playing activity. We role played teaching about the events of the Restoration. Now, it seemed like any other practice (ie a little weird, etc) but it turned out to be something I really needed. Now to start, I have a testimony that Joseph Smith had the vision he claimed he had, he truly saw Jesus Christ standing on the right hand of our Heavenly Father and was truly called by Christ to be His chosen servant (prophet) in helping Him restore the chruch He organized when He lived here on earth. Now with this testimony I went into teaching my companion...and it went off without a hitch :) Then he began teaching, when he got to the part of the lesson where he explained the First Vision the spirit was SOOOO strong and I had truly been prepared and my heart ready to listen to the spirit's promptings and direction. In this moment everything else, worries, concerns, other thoughts, etc, fell away and the spirit entered in. In this moment I received, once again, the testimony of the Holy Ghost, testifying to my soul, that what my comp was explaning and teaching was true. I knew and now KNOW that Joseph Smith was Christ's chosen servant to be the first prophet of this dispensation. I know it so deep and sure that all I want now is for all those I talk with to feel the same witness of the Spirit of what we are teaching and to find the happiness and solice that can only come in the Church of Jesus Christ (or in other words the church Christ organized). You can receive this witness for yourselves, but you must prepare your heart to let the promptings and testimony of the Spirit in. I know you can and will receive this testimony and know for a surety that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that this church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, was organized under the direction of Heaven and is the same church Christ organized when He lived here on earth. I bear this testimony and make these promises as a representative set apart and authorized to testify of Christ.

I love you all and pray that you are all well, healthy, and happy :)

With love and prayers,
Elder Flake

The men of the congregation celebrating the return of one of their missionaries!