Buenos Ejemplos de Buenos Amigos

January 29, 2014

Hello! Good week, good week.

Little snow, little cold, but all is good. Today we went to Orange County Choppers because it is literally five minutes away from our apartment. Not Orange County California, but Organ County New York! Anyways, Paul Sr. was there signing stuff, so I got a t-shirt and he signed it. I also gave him a pass along card with our phone number on it, so if he stops cussing on the show, you can thank that pass along card for that! Haha today we've also just been playing some games at the church after shopping - good times.

Things have been pretty normal in a good way with few exceptions. Michael, a youth in the ward, is heading out on the mission in a week. He had me translate into English for sacrament meeting for all his nonspanish speaking friends. I hung in there alright except for a couple parts. It was a good experience though. I went on a couple splits- one with Elder Critchfield who I live with and served with the whole time in the Bronx, and one with Elder Gonzales who will be home in a week and a day. They're both awesome missionaries and so it was just a good relaxed fun time. I love being with other missionaries. Yesterday I had an experience that is probably one of the top sweet experiences I have had out here.

I'll explain! I was going to give a baptismal interview for somebody that Elder Fox and Elder Fuller, our Zone Leaders, are going to baptize, but when we got there, we found that their investigator had been hit with some anti-Mormon literature and wanted nothing to do with us. After all four of us took some time to listen to his concerns, we started to speak. The spirit filled the room and we were all able to participate and lead him to understand that the adversary was fighting against him. He felt the Holy Ghost whisper to him, telling him that what he had read and been told were lies, and so he got up and ripped apart the paper that had the literature on it. It was great seeing the Spirit work with him and we could feel the power behind each other’s testimonies. He passed the interview after that and is going to get baptized on Saturday- should be a great service! I am grateful to be used as an instrument in the hands of God. That helped revamp my testimony of the restored Gospel, seeing God work through us. Looking for those daily, and not daily, experiences that build our testimony of God is important.

I know He lives and loves us. Thanks for the support! Hope all continues to better with the snow situation! I'll hear from you next week, possible from somewhere else other than Newburgh! Have a good week!

 -Elder Griffiths