1) "Every time we close our eyes we are in his presence, remember that..."
—Anziano Rodriguez
As we knelt in prayer following companionship study on Friday night, Anziano Rodriguez looked over at me and uttered this incredibly insightful statement. On the surface, it seems no more than a declaration of our Father's attentive nature when we pray, but as I continued to ponder the statement, the veracity therein was too powerful to ignore. When we pray to the Father, in the name of his Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, we invoke his very presence. If we truly believe he listens when we pray, does that not mean he is right there hearing the words as they leave our mouths? Let us not take this precious truth for granted. It is far too easy to give prayer a spot on our morning and evening to-do list, and treat it as little more than that, but I encourage each within the sound of my voice, (or weekly letter in this case), to offer a prayer this week. Not just any prayer, but a prayer like that of Enos, (if you don't know who Enos is, ask any one of your Mormon friends for a copy of the Book of Mormon, and find out for yourself... It will change your life, that I promise you!). Pour out the desires and gratitude of your hearts, and he will be there listening. He eagerly awaits the opportunity to bless us, but will do so, only if we ask!
2) "Just, please Anziani, don't disappear..."
—Franco Resina
Franco is just about the most awesome Italian ever. Having studied at a University in Australia for a few years, he is fluent in English, but has this Australian/Italian hybrid accent! We teach him at his coffee shop every Wednesday, and absolutely love doing so. He is extremely spiritual, having been a preacher for a number of years in Australia, but because of his work schedule, can't find time to come to church on Sunday. Things are moving in the right direction in that regard, and we know the second he manages to free us just an hour or so for sacrament meeting Sunday morning, his life will never be the same... This week we taught him about Christ's true church, and about his plan for us, known as the Plan of Salvation, or Plan of Happiness. He listened to every word, and declared it the truth. As we walked out of his shop, smiles on our faces, we turned around and saw his countenance had somewhat dimmed. Looking up, he spoke the words above, pleading that we won't leave him. Truly he recognizes the need for the Spirit in his life. When he chooses to make time for church, the Lord will make him a powerful weapon in the fight against the Adversary, but until then, we will continue to help him recognize the truth of the restored gospel, and feel the difference it brings!
3) "@#%€, non prestavo attenzione, stavo usando il telefono!"
—Alfio Visalli
Scacchi is the Italian word for Chess, and this week I played the beautiful game for the first time in many months. Alfio, our closest investigator to conversion, challenged me as we discussed the gospel in Piazza Abramo Lincoln, (my favorite). It took a little while to shake off the rust, but it wasn't too long before I was back in Grandmaster form. The game took a rough turn for Alfio when he picked up a phone call from a recent convert named Giovanni. I asked if he would prefer that I wait till he was done, but he shook me off and made his move. I shrugged and proceeded to make the move I had been setting up in the 3 or 4 previous moves, the capture of his queen with one of my rooks, who had just been biding his time, waiting for the chance to turn the tide in my favor. When he realized the mistake, he used the only Italian swear word I know, as depicted above. We laughed, and I proceeded to finish him off. There is much to learn from the game of chess, and there are many gospel applications to make, but I'll let you go play a game and figure them out for yourself. After all, you can beat your siblings in chess once, and be satisfied with that, or you can teach them to play chess, and beat them over and over.
4) "There is no hopefully about it, you brought us the truth!"
—Sri
With transfer calls looming, we delivered our, "If this is our last time together, what is our King Benjamin sermon for you?" to Sri, Linga, and Rajish. As we taught, Anziano Rodriguez bore testimony of that which he knows to be true. I seconded that testimony, and offered my own, bearing witness of the divinity and power of the Book of Mormon. I told them that I hoped that we had left them with something that would change them, and Sri interrupted me, uttering the quotation above. I was truly moved by his faith in what we had taught him. He knows the truth, and I believe they will be baptized, and become foundational rocks for the church in India. I trust in the Lord's timing, and hope they will too!
5) "Eduardo/Fabio, having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, Amen."
—Anziani Chilvers and Berger
Two more souls joined the Catania Centocinquanta on Friday, as Eduardo and Fabio were baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! Anziani Chilvers and Berger worked with these two for quite some time before they became ready, but truly they were worth the wait! The words above were pronounced just before they were immersed, just as our Savior was. Just a few short days later, the Gift of the Holy Ghost was given to them, and they were confirmed members of the Church! A beautiful ceremony, and even more beautiful was the powerful spirit that accompanied it.
6) "When opportunity knocks you don't send anyone to get it, YOU open the door, YOU let it in, welcome it, or regret it..."
—Anziano Toronto feat Hamilton Mixtape feat. BUSTA RHYMES
During an individual lesson Saturday night with Linga, I dropped some lyrical fire, hotter than the lava that was spitting out of Etna this morning at 4:30 when we dropped Anziano Cox off at the Airport, having faithfully served for 2 years. The sage wisdom of Busta Rhymes never fails to disapoint, and this only seemed appropriate as we discussed Linga's progression towards baptism. I can't say enough about this disciple of Jesus Christ. Despite his doubts or concerns, or even arranged marriage, he has declared he will be baptized the second he receives an answer to his prayers! What faith!
Whew! What a week! I'm so grateful for the opportunity I have every single day to serve my Savior, and to labor with him in his vineyard. Jacob 5:62, declares, "Pertanto andiamo, e lavoriamo con forza per quest’ultima volta, poiché, ecco, la fine si avvicina, e questa è l’ultima volta ch’io poterò la mia vigna." Notice the use of andiamo, (Let US go), and lavoriamo, (Let US labor)... We are called to the work, every one of us, but we have his promise that we do not do so alone. Of this I testify, in his sacred name, even Jesus Christ, Amen.
Vi voglio benissimo, con tutto il mio cuore!
Anziano Toronto
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