Learned about Consecration

Arrived Mar 6 2017

Love my family more than la viana (ba-i-nuh) This word here means everything. Instead of saying give me the thing you say dame la vaina. It makes me laugh and I love it but also the real viana I bought today for the cabin I’m gonna have someday. I’m gonna get a Dominican flag to put on it. 

The cute granddaughter of an investigator 

Wow this weeks highlights since I don’t have much time:

Victor Cruz is a man we are teaching who had a few trombosis (Spanish for a blood clot) and doesn’t walk well or have function of his arm but he really wants to be baptized. He started tearing up as he heard about the plan of salvation and said nothing was going to stop him from coming to church! It was raining and he couldn’t make it this week haha but things are going well so far! 

Going to buy souvenirs with my companion

 The Lord has wanted me to contact a lot this week, more than usual and we have found some amazing people. For the first time in a while a man, Alejandro, asked us when we could come back after the first lesson. It surprised the both of us. 

We met a man this week who preaches some of the saddest doctrine I’ve heard in person. He says that repentance isn’t necessary or real after the resurrection of Christ, all religions are false and an abomination, Peter never taught the gospel and is hardly credible and the gospels in the bible are not the gospel but simply history. He kind of attacked everything we stand for, when we contacted him, and said he didn’t have time, but we were worthy enough to converse over the scriptures with this shirtless, but world  “renowned” preacher. We simply listened to his ideas for some time and then told him we were there to share our message and so we would be coming back this Wednesday morning. Interesting things.

Our investigator, Jesus didn’t end up being baptized since he can’t pay tithing and so we are taking things slow now.

The zone is having some hard times and it’s a little discouraging that there are problems being our own agents and being efficient, but we have high expectations for our future.

I really enjoyed reading the story of great great (great?) grandpa Sheffield who served in Tahiti and climbed palm trees to survive a crazy ocean storm, and the miracles he worked there. Wow, I love my family. I feel kind of the same way he did but about some of the people here on my island. 

Today we had fun watching the new first vision video with the assistants and talk with them about things. Both are from my group and we talked about our confirmed travel plans on the way home. We are all going to the temple. Two of us then go to New York and have a five-hour layover there to enjoy in the second Dominican capital haha. It’s weird and nervous to think about.

This week I learned more about consecration. Everything we do in the church and in the mission is preparing us for the time when we can live consecrated lives. We must live and in a sense be celestial in order to return to Him there in the celestial kingdom, the tercer cielo. I try to consecrate myself now and hope to finish off strong. #100

Love Elder Sheffield

Going with my companion to buy sovernirs

The cute granddaughter of an investigator