Poco a poco

"Poco a poco" is a phrase I have heard close to 1000 times now. It means "little by little" and it is the phrase pretty much everyone tells me when they find out I am learning Spanish. The Gospel of Jesus Christ and conversion to Him is a lot like learning a language. For our conversion (and learning a language) I have noticed 3 things.

1- Have patience: it's never going to happen all at once, it's "poco a poco" trust that the Lord is helping you and will bless you. It is the consistency, the diligence, and the obedience that will lead to the end goal.

2- Immerse yourself: When learning a language, immersing yourself in that language is one of the most important things you can do. Conversion to our Savior is the same. Immerse yourself in scripture study, in prayer, in worship, etc. Immersion in the language of the Lord is going to help us learn, grow, and build the habits we need in order to be fully commited to the Lord forever.

3- Don't get discouraged when you mess up: This is a huge one for me right now, as I am far from perfect in Spanish, life, and the gospel, and I never will be. We are all imperfect, however, when we do mess up, Jesus Christ and His Atonement are there for us. When we sincerely repent, we are changed, and we learn. Just like in Spanish, when I mess up, I change for the future and learn from the past. We can always be forgiven, we can always change, and we can always learn. That is what repentance means to me. Sorrow without growth is not a tool of the Savior. 

"Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise." (An oldie, but a goodie)

"Be patient, my son, for it is wisdom in me, and it is not expedient that you should translate at this present time." (Haha maybe a proof-text, but this hit a little differently for me this week)

Lots of good things this week. The work has been picking up and I love to be busy, especially talking to new people. We meet new people in the street, at church, at family home evenings, and everywhere else. I'm not sure whether it's energizing or draining, but making new friends is making everything better. The mission is all about people, and it's so much more fulfilling when you are teaching friends rather than investigators (ofc my comp is the one teaching, but you know) 

This Monday and Tuesday I had my first zone conference. It was so good to meet with other missionaries. We played lots of volleyball and even got some amazing Peruvian food. We then heard messages from President in Spanish. My Spanish is coming slow, but it was so cool to understand some of what he said. Seeing progress, however slow, is so gratifying. 

This week we also had some awesome nights with members. On Tuesday we had a youth activity, on Wednesday we had a family home evening, and on Saturday we had a ward activity. On Saturday we talked all about families and our friend came and even gave the closing prayer! On Sunday none of our friends came to church RIPPP, but then a member brought her friend to church and she's interested!!! So good to see little successes. 

I've probably met about 500 people in the past month and everyone is making the mission a little more like home. 

Elder Dougall

(Sorry for no photos my comp doesn't like taking them - haha)