Los Molinos 7 - Our Heavenly Father is a God of Miracles

Los Molinos 7 - Our Heavenly Father is a God of Miracles

Hope you all had a great Valentine's Day weekend and that there was a lot of family love going on.

This was a really special week. I'm working right now with Elder Pediet! He's a brand new elder that is from the west side of the country (mentioned in last letter)! Really dedicated and super-prepared considering the fact that he hasn't even gone through the MTC (the preparation center we go through for a couple weeks) because he's going to Brazil at the start of March :(  So it's pretty bittersweet for me to find out that he's going to be serving in another country and that we'll have to say goodbye pretty soon here. But we're working hard and I'm just trying to give him the best experience I can for the short time we got together.

We saw many miracles this week. One of the things we've noticed as a mission is that due to our efforts to be obedient and work hard as a whole, that God has a lot more power through us in His work. There are prepared references,dreams sent from the Heavens that shows investigators that what we're preaching is true, and changed hearts. It's very humbling and exciting to see. We're seeing a lot of that here in Los Molinos. The ward members are pumped to accompany us to lessons, and they're doing the finding. It's something that has never happened quite the way it is now in these last 17 months I've been here.  And we're trying to always remember where it comes from and who is the author of this work.

The Rosado Family got married on Friday!!! It was really special. Their other son got back from his mission in Mexico yesterday and we'll be having a lesson with all of them tomorrow, their last lesson before their baptism on Saturday. I'm so happy for them and for many others that we're teaching as we see their faith and confidence grow in Jesus Christ and the sacrifice he did for us. It's a privelege every day I have to be a missionary.

Sorry for not being able to send pics or have a longer letter but I promise I'll send pics next week!

Love you all.

Elder Graff

Los Molinos 6 - New Companion - Trainer

Los Molinos 6 - New Companion - Trainer

I've got the biggest news of my life as a missionary about transfers this Monday....... and it's that I'm going to be a father!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sorry about the exclamation points. *(Note: In some missions, missionaries tend refer to new training missionaries as "fathers" and the next generation, young greenie missionaries as young ones who will learn from their trainers)

But I'm super excited! I'm going to see which of the "little ones" (new missionaries) I'm picking up tomorrow from the MTC but I've heard it's possibly that he's a native Dominican so that makes me really happy. I've just been waiting my whole mission to finally train a new missionary and it's here. Praying to know how to make it the best first months for the new guy. We're gonna be working hard and I'm hoping that God gives us the inspiration we need to make a difference in the lives of a lot of people.

These last couple days have been interesting though. We didn't have any time at all in our area from Monday to Friday because Elder Guzman was in the office helping with transfers and I was running a bunch of errands and doing a different type of missionary work, you could say, by working with the office. I was super anxious to get back out and work again and honestly caught a bit of "office fever". I missed the hard work, in the street sweating buckets, tired feet, and teaching. But we're back at it again. We found a really prepared family in a Family Home Evening with some members. They're all amazingly interested and have a TON of questions - which is great for us! They came to church yesterday and they're progressing well. We're working with the bishop to find callings for the recent converts and we'll be making plans to take them all to the temple soon. It's a bit harder than it was in Santo Domingo because to get there it's a bit of a trip to get to the temple from Los Molinos. But there's no sacrifice too big to go to the house of the Lord.

I love you all. Thank you for the emails and the love every week. It really keeps us animated and always wanting to share with others so they can have the blessings we experience every day. 

Have a great Valentines Day.

Elder Graff

Los Molinos 5 - Difficult Loss -- and Noche Blanca

Los Molinos 5 - Difficult loss -- and Noche Blanca

(added photos Feb 14, 2016

Elder Guzman, Abel, Preciado and I at the "noche blanca". Preciado is 85 years old and a TROOPER. The baptism was a bit difficult with his bad leg and we had the crutches right there at the font waiting for him. But he was super happy and it was cool to see him take the step and follow Christ.

With hard work and many blessings, there's always the side of opposition.

Losing a family member is never easy. I don't care who you are or what relationship you may have had with the person who passes away, it takes a toll on everyone and anyone. But I can testify that only in this Gospel can you leave a mission president's office after 15 minutes of talking and crying and praying with your companion filled with a complete peace and confidence that you will be with that person again.

My companion - Elder Guzman's father passed away this week on Tuesday night. Needless to say, it wasn't something either of us were expecting. We were at a meeting on Wednesday at the office and President pulled us aside and privately told Elder Guzman the news and then let me in. It was a touching experience. Really made me think how I would react in a situation like it. I don't know if I would've been able to keep it together as well as he did. The part that definitely comforted Elder Guzman the most, though, was that his parents were taking the missionary discussions for about three weeks before his father went to the other side. It gives Elder Guzman the confidence that in the Spirit world  his father will completely accept the Gospel. And thanks to the work we do in the temple - and what he hopes his mother does shortly by being baptized - my companion will be together with his parents and siblings for the eternities. It's such a blessing to know and have the peace of conscience the way we do by understanding the Plan of Salvation. I know it is true and that it's the only way back to the presence of our Father in Heaven.

Repeat photo with Frank and Eliany. I guess I'm the only one that feels comfortable looking funny in a photo.

We saw MANY blessings this week. On Saturday, we helped some of our investigators reach the waters of baptism at the Noche Blanca. It was a special night and a night that many investigators in the whole zone had been waiting for. I felt the Spirit so strong and it was something I'll never forget.

Enrique. A stud to say the least. He accompanied us to a lesson yesterday and he has a super powerful spirit to him when he shares his testimony. He'll do great things.

Angelina and the members that helped her find the church together with her mom on the far right. Her mom and brother are investigating the church now and they're doing really well. We'll be putting a baptism date with them this week for the month of March.

A picture of the wonderful baptisms at the Noche Blanca and those that were baptizing. As always, I was in the back on my tipytoes hahaha.

The Rosado Family has a marriage date for the 12th! Their other son comes back from the mission the 15th from Mexico so we changed the date for the 20th of this month so he'll be able to baptize one of his parents. The whole family is super motivated and it's amazing to see the influence missionaries have on the lives of their family members and friends. 

I love this area and this work and I'm ready for a whole month more of it.

Elder Graff

Burrito Heaven

We have been going Betty Crocker in the kitchen this week. We bought a bunch of stuff to do burritos and we made a papaya milkshake. SUPËR good.

The marriage of Elkin and Victoria. We had a big after party lesson thing with the bishop and first counselor at their house and a BUNCH of their family. We got some references and ate a gigantic bowl of sancocho which is basically stew. But the thing weighed like 70 pounds. We had to carry it inside the house cause they cooked it on a big bonfire outside.

I got the chicken foot :')