11.17.13

Hey, 

So we're going through changes right now and since E' Xavier is leaving to go home, we have had to do a bunch of stuff today. I'm going to stay in my same area and my new companion is named E' Betky. He’s from the states and has been on his mission for a year. He was in the office for a while, and I hear he’s a super hard worker and that's exactly what I need! E' Xavier was great, but by the end, he was struggling with staying focused. Apparently there hasn't been a set of US companions in Cerro 1 for a long time because the people in the north part of Cerro don’t really like us, but luckily E' Betky is huge! I'm really excited for this change because I have a lot to get better at. I have progressed to a point in Spanish where I can get by with the words I know and I can understand the people… I’ve gotten a little comfortable and I hate getting comfortable. I want to expand my vocabulary and the only way I'm going to do that is by working hard. We have been working on the fifth principle of the gospel (perserverar hasta el fin...persevere to the end or something like that) with the people here. I found that many of the people are willing to do the first four (have faith, repent, be baptized, receive the spirit) but they are not willing to work hard and stick it out to the end. I have to teach the clase de principios del evangelio and in one of my lessons. I taught about how we are going to persevere in this life until the end. Of course the three basics...prayer, lecture of the scriptures, and going to church. But I taught a fourth one which is work. If the people don't have a desire to work, they will never have a desire to read, pray, go to the church because all the problems of the world will so easily come upon them. In the Book of Mormon, the Lord never just gives the people what they want. He gives them the desire to do it for themselves through the scriptures, prayer, and church. I taught that the desire to work doesn't come instantly and that it should be taught at a young age. I told countless stories about how if I didn't work in the house, my mom would lose her mind. Or how if I slept in passed 8, my mom would rip my head off. I told them that as adults, the only way they’re going to gain the desire to work, is through working. Just like with all of the other three. You won't gain a desire to read unless you read...and so on and so forth. The problem with a bunch of the people is that they just don't want to work. I know that I didn't work that much at my house or have the desire to read or pray or go to church...but through my parents’ desire for me to be successful and happy, they forced me to work and forced me to read and pray and go to church. I taught them that, as parents, if they love their children and want the most success and happiness for them, they better teach their children how to overcome problems, persevere to the end and work to achieve success. The people then tried to tell me that they had the desire to work and they would do anything to succeed and have eternal life. Success and Eternal Life go hand in hand… I think. 

There was a video that I watched about a man who was super successful. Another man wanted to become successful like him so man B asked man A what he should do to become successful. Man A said, “meet me at the beach at 3 AM tomorrow and I will show you the key to becoming successful.” Man B met the man the next day at 3 in the morning at the beach, dressed in regular clothes. Man A walked into the ocean to where the water was waist deep and invited Man B to come into the water. Man B thought the guy was crazy but said that he had the desire to be successful so he met the guy in the ocean waist deep. Man A then took man B and shoved him under the water. Man B was struggling and trying to get up out of the water, but man A was holding him under too strongly. As Man B was about to pass out, Man A held him up out of the water... He said to Man B, “as soon as you want to succeed as badly as you want to breathe, then you will be successful.”

If we really have the desire to get something, then the Lord will help us achieve our desires. He has supplied us with the scriptures, an ability to talk with him, and a place to worship to receive personal revelation. If we aren't willing to gain success or eternal life THE LORD’S way, then we don't really want it that bad. We need to be willing to do anything it takes to achieve eternal life...working, reading, praying and going to church are not as bad as drowning, yet we still don't do it.

I am so grateful for parents who have tried everything to help me understand how to be successful. I have also realized that I have not been working as hard as I possibly could be this past week. It doesn't matter what my companion does, I should be able to do everything in my power to succeed. I can't wait to get E' Betky because every new companion that I get is exactly what I need to grow and learn. Sorry if the message was a bit rambled but I really hate writing and have never been able to express myself through writing like I can through speaking. Thank you for your prayers. I'll write you next week to tell you all about E' Betky. 

E' McRae

Make sure Gavin and Abbie are working.