July 4, 2016

El Fin (The Finale)

So this will be my last email! Next Monday we will be visiting converts so I probably won’t have time to write much if at all.

This week was AMAZING!  We have had a lot of progress with some of our investigators and have also found some new, receptive people.  We had a new investigator named Katherine Muñoz come to church yesterday.  She only came for about 50 minutes because of other commitments.  She has a baptismal date for the 24th! She is such an angel! The Rodriguez family came to church!!!! They got there and hour or so late because of car problems and the rain but they still came! :) Ximena (the wife) has her doubts and differences, Nicolas (the husband) enjoyed it and seems to be more and more receptive and Julieta (8) said she wants to come to church every Sunday! The members received them well.  It really was such a miracle to have 4 investigators come to church yesterday.  I don’t think I have ever had that many in one day! 

I still don’t feel like this is my last email.  It doesn’t feel real and I don’t feel I have had time to really meditate about it and take it in.  I just want to work hard this last week and make every second of it count. As I come to the end of my mission, I am so grateful for all of the amazing experiences I have had, the people I have met, the culture I have come to love, and the strengthened testimony that I have.  If there is one thing the mission has taught me, it is that I need the Savior and I need His gospel in order to become what He expects of me.   I had some experiences this week where things didn’t really work out as I had hoped.  I was kind of bummed about it but then thought to myself "Is this how Christ would face this situation?" I realized that my mission has been full of mistakes and also triumphs but that the Lord has helped me to learn from them all.  I am grateful for the Savior´s positive, loving example.  I know He lives and loves us.  

I love you all too! Thanks for your letters of support and for your constant prayers.

Hasta ver, (Until I see you)

Elder Robert Dawson Crofts III ​

Today we had an activity with all of the missionaries in the south of the mission for the 4th of July. BEST P-DAY EVER!

I saw a lot of familiar faces and it was good to play some sports as well!

Early pictures of Valparaiso

Last Monday, we got together as a zone to play soccer!

It was a good time

Thanks to Hermana Kessler who did not want to play for taking the pictures.

Some pics for Elder Vail's camera