This week I learned that doing dishes
is bad. I’ve always done the dishes after we eat at someone’s house my whole
mission, and the members appreciate it. Or so I thought! I guess
this area is a little different than my last. Apparently, the custom in
Honduras is that when someone invites you over to dinner and you do their
dishes, that means you didn´t like the food and you don´t want to come back.
I didn´t know that until after I did a members dishes the other night and
they were offended! I was super confused and thought they were joking.
I’ve been doing dishes at every house we eat at! The poor
missionaries that follow me probably won’t get to be invited into homes to eat
now! I still can´t quite wrap my brain around why that is offensive, but
I made a pact with the lady who fed us that I wouldn´t do dishes in Honduras
again.
The hermanas in my district have two
baptisms next week so I have to do their interviews. I’ve been practicing
with my companion and praying a lot and I know the Lord will help me, but I’m
still pretty nervous. Baptism is a big ordinance and covenant to take on
and I have to judge whether a person is ready for it. That´s the reason
why I was worried about being a District Leader. But my weak things are
made strong in the Lord so all I can do is put my faith in Him and hope I
understand their Spanish!
There are a ton of best things about the mission, like
seeing people´s lives change and watching the Spirit work in people, but one of
them is the revelation that a missionary can receive. I don´t want to
sound selfish, because I am also serving to help others and Heavenly Father,
but a talk from Elder Holland said that if there is only one person that you
convert on your mission it had better be you, and that is what´s happening.
I have grown so much in my conversion, my testimony of my Savior and my
knowledge of the gospel. I receive revelation daily for both myself and
my investigators. That´s one of the most important doctrines that we have
in this church that people really tend to overlook or under appreciate. I
learn so much from my personal studies and even more in lessons. The
strongest and most sudden revelations I receive are when I´m teaching someone
else. In many lessons people have asked exact questions that I had been
searching to know the answer as well for a long time, and by the time they
finish their question I know the answer or when I start talking it comes to me.
It´s moments like those that there is no doubt in my mind that the Spirit
helping and working through me, because I am not smart enough to figure it out
on my own. Sorry out of time and I brought my USB this time but I can’t
figure out how to get the pics on here
Love you guys!
Elder Cook
*The scripture Blake referred to is found in Ether 12:27
"And if men come unto
me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may
be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before
me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I
make weak things become strong unto them."
