May 19, 2015
Que tal todos...
Another good week, despite some challenges. This has been a tough change. But
we've had lots of miracles too... Let's focus on those.
About a month and a half ago
we baptized a 19 year old girl named Janet.
We then baptized her two younger sisters. As we were teaching them,
their mom was receptive but their dad was very closed because he was very
active in the evangelical church and didn't have any intention of leaving.
Slowly but surely his heart began to be softened and he was just beginning to
warm up when he fell into his old addiction of alcohol. He spent almost 6 weeks
drunk until he finally managed to stop. However, when we talked to him for the
first time after he was finally sober, he was a completely different person. He
was so pilas that we thought that he was still drunk or on drugs. Turns out
that the Lord often works in mysterious ways. His addiction had brought him to
the depths of humility and he finally found the motivation within himself to
seek the promised changes and relief that the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ
offers us. In this last week he was reading the Book of Mormon and praying
every day. The great miracle
of Sunday was that he was there, sitting with his daughters, before
Sacrament Meeting started. It made me
think about what the Lord says in Ether 12:27, that he gives unto us
weaknesses that we might be humble, but if we humble ourselves before Him, then
is His grace sufficient to make our weaknesses become strong. I don't think
that the Lord gave this man his addiction to alcohol, but I certainly believe
that the Lord will use that weakness to help him come unto Christ so that he
can overcome it. That made me think about the weaknesses the Lord has given me,
pride, impatience, lack of charity, etc. Clearly the Lord wants me to improve
in those areas, but as long as I'm trying and doing all I can to work on those
weaknesses, the promise is that they will bring me to Christ. Interesting... I
guess that means I need to have a little more patient with myself and not
just wish that I was perfect instantly. If that were the case, then where
would the force come from than brings ME down to the depths of humility and to
Christ. That being said, there's certainly some weaknesses that I
would not miss if I could wave a wand and make them all go away.
Hmmm, I've got 5 minutes
left and am not sure what else to say. If I sit here thinking, I won't have
time to say anything at all. It's quite a dilemma, no? Anyway, I will testify,
as a personal representative of Jesus Christ, that I know that He lives and
that He loves me, He loves you all, and I can especially testify of His love
for the people here in Guatemala. I know that through His prophet Joseph Smith
He has restored His true church to the earth in order to help us come unto him
and prepare to have happy families here and in the eternities. I know that the
Book of Mormon is powerful and convincing evidence of this and have seen and
dozens of people have gained this testimony for themselves.
Con mucho amor,
Elder Cannon
Also, a picture my
companion took with the phone as a drunk man was trying to kiss me. He had some
weird infection on his face too. The couple sitting on the street behind my
companion couldn't stop laughing.
Elder Cannon, the days are moving rapidly and your time in Guatemala is quickly coming to an end. I am envious of your parents in coming to pick you up. What an exciting but sobering time for you. I was touched by the above note you wrote in regards to the difficulty your investigator had in overcoming his addiction. It will continue to be hard for him to keep his promises to himself, his family and the Lord to stay sober and he may fall, but you have given him marvelous reason to resist those tremendously strong urges that he will continue to have. And what a wonderful option and reason for staying sober that is. He will think of you and thank you forever. It will be almost as tough for you to leave your wonderful work there and enter again into a life of a college student with a totally different purpose. On your mission you are living the Law of Consecration. It is rare that you will live it so completely as you are doing now. You will miss it and will try to maintain those feelings you have at this time but other things will interfere, not that they are not good, they are just different and worldly. School and work, post mission, sometimes get in the way of the Christ like feelings you would like to nurture and maintain. But determination to do right and think right will prevail, I am sure, for you. How proud we have been that you have served so valiantly. We expect the same from Ethan. We had the privilege of picking him up from the airport and making sure he had an opportunity to say goodbye to the William's, Becca and your Grandpa and Grandma Cannon. It was tender to see them give hugs and well wishes. Then after having lunch at Zuppa's we dropped him off at the MTC. He was feeling a little sick at the time so, hopefully, he made it okay through the first day. We took some pictures and sent them to your folks. I hope you will have a chance to see them. By the way he was pretty sad that he wasn't able to see you before he left. Four years is a long time. Looking forward to seeing you, hopefully at the reunion in July. We continue to pray for you as you join your two cousins who have already served. Grandpa Riding
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