October 26, 2026

The majority of the photos this week came from a blitz we did in Puerto de Santa Maria. It's a ton of fun to unite as a district and work together to find people. We even found a family from Parla!

This branch in Sanlúcar is not large, but it makes any impact even greater. It was a super cool to see that 25% of the people in church on Sunday were actually our friends. They bring promising growth in the future. 

Our bold endeavor to conquer the language of English is going strong. We spent lots of time learning together which is a little exhausting, but we are progressing little by little. 

This week we were invited to read "Beware of Pride" and think on its message. Reading it reminded me of this quote by CS Lewis as well. 

"Do not imagine that if you meet a really humble man he will be what most people call 'humble' nowadays: he will not be a sort of greasy, smarmy person, who is always telling you that, of course, he is a nobody. Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him."

— C.S. Lewis, _Mere Christianity_

"Their self-esteem is determined by where they are judged to be on the ladders of worldly success. They feel worthwhile as individuals if the numbers beneath them in achievement, talent, beauty, or intellect are large enough. Pride is ugly. It says, “If you succeed, I am a failure.

If we love God, do His will, and fear His judgment more than men’s, we will have self-esteem.

Pride is a damning sin in the true sense of that word. It limits or stops progression. The proud are not easily taught."

- Presidente Benson

Pride comes from doubting the worth and love we are freely and infinitely given by our relationship to God. We begin to not believe in that free grace and try to earn that worth by competing with others. It is a fight everyone has. Let's think about how we can better enjoy the innate love we receive from God and appreciate the successes of others, hoping we can always improve as well. 

Elder Dougall