Charity...

Hello!!!

So I just wanted to first let Brittany know that Baby in Portuguese is simply, Bebe. Nothing special, just pronounced "Beh-Beh", sorry it’s not anything cool. But if you want to call something cute that is small, you can say "Bonitinha" "Boh-Knee-Chee-nia" just an idea.

A few more things I forgot to mention last week, there is music everywhere here! If I could relate it to anything, it would probably be down-town Boise, on a weekend night in the summer. Everyone is walking around in shorts and tank tops or no shirts, loud music is playing everywhere, and everyone is in a good mood (most of the time). Also, there are dogs everywhere, it’s interesting, when people don't want their dogs anymore, they simply just abandon them on the streets. It’s really sad actually seeing all these wandering dogs. And there is no such thing as a Dog pound here so yeah, there are a lot of dogs roaming the streets of Laredo.

I totally know exactly what Elder Jacobson is talking about involving the buses. It is Crazy. The best way to get on a bus is to just crowd surf your way on.

Probably the most interesting thing about me to other people, would be my eyes. It’s not very often here you see someone with black hair and blue eyes. Some people think it’s cool, others are freaked out by it.

Last week I had a run in with a crazy lady. Apparently during our first lesson, she had a revelation that when I was a child, I had an evil spirit enter my body, and I needed to fast fervently and ask god to deliver me from this spirit. Is this true mom and dad, did I have an evil spirit take over my body when I was younger? :)

So also this last week, I met my first very difficult investigator. This man knows A LOT about the bible. He has a lot of scriptures memorized and I felt like he was only trying to prove us wrong the whole time we were there. It was extremely frustrating as a missionary because, we want to TEACH, not argue. It’s impossible to teach and progress without the spirit, and the spirit does not dwell in contentious atmospheres. The words of Mickey, the Trainer came to my head saying, "He doesn't just wanna beat ya, He wants to HUMILIATE YA!!" How better this visit would have been if there was peace.

My advice for everybody this week is to have Charity, or "the pure love of Christ." One Scripture that I love is 1st Corinthians 13:4-8

"Charity suffereth long and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth..."

You don't need to do anything grand to have Charity; you don't need to put your life on the line to help somebody out. Charity starts with something small. You never know when a "Good Afternoon", or a "How are you?" or even a simple smile could turn someone’s day around; and maybe even better, how it could turn your day around.

The other day while walking up a hill, I noticed an older man in a wheel chair struggling to make his way up this steep incline. I walked over to him and simply asked, "Where are you headed?" Then I proceeded to push him up the hill until we arrived at his destination.

Again, the ultimate example of Charity is Jesus the Christ. Our Savior, who fell to his knees, facing more pains and afflictions than imaginable, so much to the point where he, the Only Begotten, the Perfect Man, asked God if there was another way. But he continued, and he did this to help us up that hill. If the scripture that I love is about "Charity" and Jesus was the perfect example of charity, then in turn, this scripture describes Jesus Christ as well. Look at this scripture again but this time, insert the name, "Jesus" for the word "Charity".

"Jesus suffereth long and is kind; Jesus envieth not; Jesus vaunteth not himself, He is not puffed up, Doth not behave himself unseemly, seeketh not His own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Jesus never faileth..."

Again, have Charity. Open a door for somebody and smile! You never know what kind of a difference you will make on someone; I also know that it will make a difference in your life. My quote for this week is from Gordon B. Hinckley:

"Speak out with words of love and peace, appreciation and respect."

I love you all and hope you have a fantastic week. Heck, I know you will have a fantastic week!

Elder Smidt X