Qué dicha es

The Lord teaches His lessons in mysterious ways and sometimes, they're not the lessons we're expecting. For example, yesterday, I learned the lesson of the sidewalk greeting.

For a couple of weeks now, there's been this police officer working outside of a government building on a street we frequently walk down. I think he's a guard there or something. Anyway. Everytime we walk past, he greets us. "Hola. ¿Cómo están?" Now, you have to understand something about the mission. The men here LOVE to bug us. I don't know if there's been a single day in my mission when some guy in the street HASN'T cat-called or wolf-whistled at me. I DON'T EVEN LOOK GOOD!! But, after 17 months of it, I've grown accustomed to ignorning all men in the street. So, for the past few weeks, I've been ignoring this man in front of the government building. But yesterday, he stopped us.

"Hey wait I talked to someone from your church once over in Laguna Seca but then I moved to Centro and lost contact but he really helped me out a lot in a hard time and I just wanted to know where the church is or what to do!" he said, all in one breath.

I was confused at first, but then I understood. He just recognized us as missionaries and knew we could help him and his family. So we took his address and phone number and told him we'd come visit him and headed on our way. I felt so STUPID. Here I was thinking this guy was just looking to bug when all he wanted was to hear the message of the Gospel. I learned that I maybe need to be a little more Christ-like and be nice to people on the street, regardless if they're looking to bug or not. Haha. Like I said, unexpected lessons in unexpected ways.

I have completed 17 months this week.

 These past 17 months have been an adventure. I only have 2 weeks left, but I'm going to make the most of them. No matter how hard the work is, how many people slam the door in your face, how hot it is, or how much your feet hurt, the work is a joy. But we are responsible for making that decision. We have to decide if we're going to let Satan get us down or if we're going to put a smile on and share it with even those who laugh in our faces.

An Argentine backroad. Love it

I love being a missionary. It's changed my life. And I'm so grateful for the opportunities I've had here in Argentina. It's going to be weird going home. But there starts the REAL mission. And I know that all of the experiences I've had here will be a blessing for me in the future. I know that the Lord lives. I know this is His Gospel. It's the most correct thing this world has to offer. Which is why sharing it is such a joy!

Mexican Monday - Nachos

Until next week,
Hermana Hein