So this week was not what I expected. We had some good lessons with investigators, but none of them committed to be baptized. Hopefully they will commit in the next week or two.
So I was so excited for conference!! I was absolutely pumped. I was prepared to be inspired and blown away by prophetic talks answering my questions. We get to the church on Saturday, a half hour before the first session, and my companion and I are the first people to show up. 5 minutes til the first session, we were still the only people there. I had been told many times that there would be a room set up where I could watch conference either on a computer or something so I could understand the talks (in English) so before the first session started, I asked my companion where that room was. He just laughed and said no one else in the ward speaks English so why would they do that just for you? I was completely heart broken.
Looking back at it I should have been prepared for that, but so many people told me I could watch it in English that I wasn't prepared for that. So for session after session, I just watched prophets speak, and listened to the translator talk over them in Portuguese. I literally didn't understand any of it. It was one of the most depressing and torturing moments of my life haha. Some times I would understand a phrase, write it down, and then get lost again. At least I got to hear the music in English. But sometimes even that was disappointing because a lot of the songs the motab choir sang were the EXACT same versions on my ipod. Overall, I was let down this conference. Not by the talks (obviously) but by my ability to understand it.
So earlier this week we got a call saying that investigator (whom had already been committed to be baptized) had just moved into our ward. So... We have a baptism this transfer! hahaha And I got to baptize her! her name is Luanda, and she is 14. I didn't even have to do the prayer over again. The baptism was in between our first two sessions of conference, so that helped my self esteem and moral a little bit.
The last conference session, on Sunday afternoon was the only session I got to watch in English. I took so many notes. I was so happy haha. I soaked every word that they said it. I really liked how (I think it was) Elder Richard G Scott talked about opposition in all things, and I felt like he was directly talking to me. I started laughing so hard when in the last session, the session I could finally watch in English, One of the talks was in Portuguese. We went back into the room to watch it in Portuguese without a translator, and I understood a lot because instead of just hearing a translators voice, I could read his mouth and tell what he was saying.
All in all, it was okay. I'm going to download the talks only an sd card off of lds.org and listen to them in English for the next few days during personal study.
Well, conference came and went, I learned many lessons, and I made goals for the next general conference.
Love,
Elder Moss
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