Week #55 "I'm Home" Cuenca Spain Madrid Mission August 13, 2018

Hehe gotcha. Well I'm here in Cuenca, and it's awesome!

The reason for the title is that we found a few parks here (there are more parks here than in all of my other areas combined) that look a lot like parks from Utah haha. The area looks a bit like Utah as well. But it's been a great first week!

This past week we had quite a few fun experiences, last pday I unexpectedly arrived at the Madrid temple (leeeeeeeeeeeets Gooooooooo) to meet up with my new companion Elder Johnson and he's awesome. He's from West Valley and we get along super well. This week has been great getting acquainted with the area and the small branch here. It's a youngish branch, lots of young people and converts so with that comes a few difficulties but also a lot of potential! Super excited to be here. We also made some good relationships with some youth playing soccer, always a good time. Sunday was a little bit of a "heart attack", no but almost. A member had an anxiety attack during my testimony, that's a little awkward, you don't know quite what to do... haha so i wrapped it up real quick and then carried her out to the car. Haha but she's okay now no worries. 

 Just wanted to share a part from  Be Ye Therefore Perfect -- Eventually a talk by Elder Holland. 

My brothers and sisters, except for Jesus, there have been no flawless performances on this earthly journey we are pursuing, so while in mortality let’s strive for steady improvement without obsessing over what behavioral scientists call “toxic perfectionism.” We should avoid that latter excessive expectation of ourselves and of others and, I might add, of those who are called to serve in the Church—which for Latter-day Saints means everyone, for we are all called to serve somewhere.

In that regard, Leo Tolstoy wrote once of a priest who was criticized by one of his congregants for not living as resolutely as he should, the critic concluding that the principles the erring preacher taught must therefore also be erroneous.

In response to that criticism, the priest says: “Look at my life now and compare it to my former life. You will see that I am trying to live out the truth I proclaim.” Unable to live up to the high ideals he taught, the priest admits he has failed. But he cries:

“Attack me, [if you wish,] I do this myself, but [don’t] attack … the path I follow. … If I know the way home [but] am walking along it drunkenly, is it any less the right way simply because I am staggering from side to side?

“… Do not gleefully shout, ‘Look at him! … There he is crawling into a bog!’ No, do not gloat, but give … your help [to anyone trying to walk the road back to God.]”

I know that it doesn't matter who we have been, what we have done, or where we are at. There is ALWAYS a hope for a better future. I love all of you, say your prayers, read your scriptures, be humble, be obedient, and don't forget that God lives and loves you! Have a good week!