Hello one and all, I hope that you are all
doing just amazing! Honestly...well...this week has been the most dramatic week
of my life. It has made such a drastic, extreme change from one side to the
next...and I think I have grown a lot thanks to the experience. I don’t NEARLY
have all the answers, and I feel quite nervous...but I am excited at the same
time. I have hope and am trying to stay very optimistic about everything.
I shall start with the
more boring part and get to the more dramatic stuff at the end.
I tried to get some
service done this week, chopping at the weeds like crazy. It was hot, tiring,
and you end up just exhausted and sore after, but the people are sincerely
grateful when you help them with it. Whether they tell you or not, they always
want you to help, and we have to be willing to do it.
Well, alright, I shall
get to the craziness. This week was boring until Friday. Thursday night I
received a mysterious phone call telling me I had to be in immigration the next
day at 1:30. And, considering the fact that we had baptismal interviews, I had
to go with a member from my ward. So, I called up a convert, but he cancelled
on me Friday around 11:30. So, I go and ask a guy named Pastor. He looks at me
like I’m stupid, and agrees! WHAT! So, I trek over to San Pedro, going places I
don’t know with a guy who isn’t my companion to do a dumb routine job in
immigration. Lame. But we had a complete and total blast getting there and back
in one piece. Honestly, he is one of my best friends now!
Saturday, I get another
mysterious call, but this one from President Veirs. He asks me to come to his
house to talk to him. So, after getting lost and charged way too much in a
taxi, we made it and he unfortunately informed me that my grandmother had
passed away the night before. The news came as a big shock to me. I honestly
wasn’t expecting that at all...and he allowed me to call home to check up and
asked what happened. Thankfully, I spoke to my father and brother and they
informed me that all is well, and an overwhelming calm came over me. But then,
President Veirs (being very tactful) decided to drop yet ANOTHER bomb on my
life. He tells me, “Well, on Monday you will be called as a Zone Leader to work
with Elder Roper in Progreso Norte.” WHAT!? ME?!? I was just fine and comfortable
being a tiny little trainer and enjoying my time with my son. But looks like
the Lord has VERY big changes in store for me! Yikes!
However, that night we
had 4 baptisms - a complete family and another man who just loves the church. I
felt the Spirit pour out in the room of the baptismal font as the newly
baptized converts bore their testimonies on how they had repented of their sins
and that they were incredibly happy and that they wanted to keep going forever.
Especially when Guadelupe started to cry and say that she knew temptations
would come, but that they would only be to make us stronger. I love these
people, and I love that the Lord let me be the one to help them know the
gospel.
So, yesterday I sang “I’ll
go where you want me to go” in church to give a small farewell. I spent the
whole day saying goodbye to people after...and it surprises me in how little
time someone can grow to love people so much. And it just becomes that much
harder to say goodbye sometimes.
But we must...but it mustn’t
be forever.
That is what I’ve
learned. The death of my grandma has been something very sacred to me as all of
the sudden I must live what I teach a lot more. The Plan of Salvation is very
real. I know without a doubt, that my grandma is in Spirit Paradise.
Why? Because she was faithful. She did everything she needed to. She was not
ashamed of the gospel and lived the commandments as well as she could.
Honestly, she has been one of the biggest examples in MY life, and I know that
if I do my part like she did hers, I will see her again. Sure, I can feel the
gap she leaves behind...but it has no sting. That is the joy of the gospel.
That is the hope that Jesus Christ gave to us by atoning for our sins. That is
what was meant by "Why search ye for the living among the dead? He is not
here, for He is risen!"
He is risen, and we all
can be too, if we stay faithful to the one and only true gospel on this Earth.
If there are problems, we have got to fix them. That is the only way.
I love you grandma, and I
love all of you! With all my heart-
Vaya Pues
Elder Tinkham
