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| Maria's Baptism!! |
What is up party peeps?
This was a really good week. It only snowed a couple days of the week at the beginning, but it has been really nice since then. Thank you to those who have been praying for warmer weather!
Last Friday we had a mission-wide Zoom meeting and we got to hear from a bunch of Church leaders and it was super dope. It was just for the UOM, and we got to hear from Elder Carl B. Cook of the 70, Sister Bonnie H. Cordon, President Craig C. Christensen, and Elder Quentin L. Cook from the Quorum of the 12! It was super cool and there were some really awesome things said. Elder Quentin L. Cook said that going on a mission will bless the lives of everyone we love. The mission is such a grinddd but there are so many benefits from it that aren't just for the missionaries either. As hard as it is, I'm grateful to be a missionary now.
We met Maria for the first time in person this week 2 days before her baptism to give her a quick tour of the Church building. We thought it would be good for her to see the baptismal font and stuff before the actual day. She seriously is such a baller and her testimony is so strong. She loves the restored gospel so much. Turns out, she's also Filipino! I thought it was really cool that I'm still getting to work with Filipino people before I even get to go to the Philippines. Once she said she was Filipino I was like, "Bruh I should've known," because there are a bunch of things about her that are very Filipino: she works really really hard (in health care too (lots of Filipinos work in health care)), she's short (see attached pic), she's really funny, and she was so ready to accept the gospel.
As for Maria's actual baptism, it was amazing. She doesn't have any family that lives here in Utah because she moved here about a year ago, but as a caretaker she has a lot of clients who are old people that she says have basically become her family. It actually was one of her clients that she took care of that was the first person to really talk to her about the church, and eventually helped her want to meet with missionaries. We got to meet this friend of Maria's at the baptism, and it was her son that did the baptizing which was really special. All of the talks were so good and the Spirit was so strong.
This was one of the most special moments of my mission so far because it really showed me how there are so many parts to someone's conversion story. Some missionaries are just the ones to knock a door a million times, other missionaries are the ones when the door finally opens, other missionaries are the ones that may get to teach them, and other missionaries are the ones that get to be there when they get baptized. There are so many more missionaries involved with a baptism than just the two that get to be there. I feel this way about the people I was teaching in Eagle Mountain, and Maria is just the same. I feel so blessed that I got to be here for this very special part of Maria's story.
That's basically all for the week! I love you all!!
Elder Snyder
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| Getting ready for Maria's Baptism |
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| Elder Dieker made chicken parm |
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| New decorations for the apartment |
