Week 24

Hola Everyone.

I hope you've all had an amazing week and that you've had many opportunities to serve those around you and to feel the spirit. I have some crazy, exciting news I want to share with you all. So I'm changing areas tomorrow! I'm going to still be in the city. The place is called Mitla and my area is La Hacienda. I'm also going to be training!!! Good heck, I'm quite nervous. I've only been in the mission field for three transfers now and I'll be training a new missionary starting tomorrow. It's a huge step for me, especially with the language. My Spanish is definitely not great, but thanks to the tender mercies of our Heavenly Father, I've improved so much here in this first four months in the mission field.

We've had some awesome things happen in this area and it's really starting to open up. I'm excited to see what happens in the future. This area has been so dang hard, but I've learned so much. I know that through our struggles and tough times in our lives, Heavenly Father can teach us so many things!! I've had quite the experience reading and studying the Book of Mormon every day in the mission field. I've absolutely learned to LOVE to read the Book of Mormon. What a blessing it is in our life. It is so powerful and I know that we can receive so much strength through it if we truly read and study it.

We had an investigator come to church with us this week which was really a huge blessing in our areas. And we have two or three inactive members that we've been working so hard with that have came to church three Sundays consistently now. What a miracle that has been for us! I know we haven't had a million baptisms and we've struggled a lot in this area, but we've always continued to work hard.

I know that I'm very weak and that I have so many weaknesses, but just like the scripture says in Ether 12:27 - if we humbly come unto him he will make weak things become strong!! We all have weaknesses that we fight everyday. But like Elder Holland said, "NO ONE can fall lower than the light of Christ shines. That is IMPOSSIBLE."

The Atonement is so real. I have seen the atoning power of Jesus Christ work so many times in my life and I have to continually use it on a daily basis. But thanks to the atonement, we ALWAYS have HOPE! I love you all so much and I hope you all have an amazing week. Keep serving, keep loving, and keep trying!!

Elder Blake

Saying goodbye to my Ward Family