Become Truly Converted

Sector- San Filipe, Chile

Companero- Elder Wiseman

Carta #26

haha sickkk!!  Dad seems like he is 10 times cooler now because now he goes and buys Ollie airsoft guns and he admits to repenting for buying a Prius hahahaha!!  WOW, its a miracle!!!!  Its all about them big trucks!!!  hahah thats sick that in your class you used a bunch of surf vids to teach the gospel haha!!  Thats how you get to the heart of the young men in San Diego.  I wish we could do that here!!! that'd be sick!!  And no, I have the same companion from Utah!! He's cool! He goes home in 5 weeks!!!  And he's getting married 2 months after he gets home! Wow fast!!  

This week was a really good week for us because I really feel like we helped our investigators become so much closer to baptism!! We had a Seventy come and talk to us, he's the president of the missionary department.  He came and gave a really good speach about what our purpose really is as missionaries.  He talked a lot about how missionaries a lot of times (at least here in Chile) baptize people after they're done with all the lessons but really they are not ready for baptism.  They are just focused on getting them baptized as fast as they can. But its our job as missionaries to keep the people in the church and to help them come unto repentence.  And that is really our main purpose is to help the people come unto repentence and want to follow Christ for the rest of their lives.  If they are not committed to following christ for the rest of their lives and not committed to trying to becoming as much like christ as they possibly can then they are not ready for baptism.  He emphasized this a lot because in chile there are SO many inactives.  There are technically more than 1000 people that our baptized just in our ward and 130 go to church and are active.  It is a huge problem with the people going inactive here in chile.  So I have made it a goal not to try to get as many baptisms as I can but to really have my converts stay in the church and have them really prepared to take on this super sacred covenant!!! Its not about just baptizing because if they get baptized and they become inactive, the scriptures say it would have been better if they would have never know me.  So it would be better for them not to baptize them if theyre not ready!! haah thats what I learned this week about the work!! I am trying to be the best missionary I can becuase its a short time out here and I have a lotttttt left!!! haahah And now that Ive seen how important it is to try to have all the attributes of christ, Ive been trying to compare what I can improve, and wooooowwww Im pretty bad!!! but Im working on it! hahah We had a family come to church this sunday they have three kids and theyre super good!! ITs so hard to get people to church here so when they showed up we were super excited!! We hope to be able to baptize them the 16th!!! We have a lot of investigators preparing for baptism and I realllyyy hope they can progress!!! 

We are working a lot in this small town called Curimon outside of San Felipe and we have to take a taxi there everyday but almost alll our investigators are there.  The weather is FINALLY starting to get a little bit colder!! here is supposed to be soooo cold in the winter so I hope I stay here until the winter so that I can see the snow!!! On our P day next week I think we might be going to this place called portillo and its like a ski resort.  ITs super beautiful Ive seen pictures so that will be sweet!!! I hope that alll of you are doing well! I miss you all! i only have a girls mission left to go!!!!!!

I love you all!!!

Love, 

Elder Nate Dirkmaat