Lupe brought me to Lupe

 Hi all,

This week I feel SO blessed holy cow. Heavenly Father really was preparing some amazing souls in McAllen and we finally found them! I AM SO EXCITED TO TELL YOU ABOUT MY WEEK!! 

GOOD:

- We met an inactive member named Lupe!?!? She was the sweetest woman. Lupe has a lot of health complications that prohibit her from leaving except to go to the doctors office but she so appreciates our visit. She has been in McAllen for years and told us all about the Church's history here, it was fascinating.

- I ALMOST made it through the week without any incidents on my bike. Maybe next week. 

- On Saturday, we did not have a member meal scheduled. So, we did what any reasonable human being would do... SUSHI. Elder Kumar and I found this awesome little Sushi place called Kumori Sushi and just went to town. 10/10 would recommend.

BETTER:

- We had an incredible lesson with our friend Paul who we met last Sunday. We invited our ward's recent converts, the Murad Family to come with us, and it was perfect. Brother Murad was raised Catholic and then he, along with his two kids, converted to the Church of Jesus Christ in December. Paul has a Catholic background so there was really nothing better than having Brother Murad there to share his story and testimony with Paul. There was such a power in Paul's apartment as the Murad's shared about their baptism and the blessings they have seen in their life since. Paul wants to get baptized and receive these blessings too! He is on a very loose Baptismal Date for the middle of May. We are having our Word of Wisdom lesson this week, so definitely pray for Paul!

- A new friend just fell into our laps this week! We received a referral for a guy named Julian. Julian is dating Elizabeth, who is an inactive member. They are planning on starting a family together and want to be married in the temple! We were so excited to meet with them and to see that Elizabeth has such a strong testimony and desire to come back to Christ. We are hoping we can help them and their future family by preparing Julian for baptism and then for them both to be sealed together in the Lord's home. This opportunity seems perfect for the timeline of the temple going up here in McAllen and that gives them a really good vision of where they want to get... how cool right? 

- Remember Judith? We played Lotería with her? Yes, we love Judith. We had 2 lessons in her home this week and she has been reading the Book of Mormon with her son Alex, who recently got Baptized. She reads very intently and always has a lot of questions for us. It was so cool to hear her talk about the changes and improvements she has seen in her son since he received the Gift of the Holy Ghost a few months ago! She has been a first-hand witness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ changing lives! Although she has not expressed a desire for baptism herself, she has expressed a desire to learn about the temple and how it could benefit her family... and we want to help her get there!

- We also met Agustin! He is such a cool guy. He just had a baby girl 3 weeks ago and really wants to transform his life for her. We haven't had a ton of time to gauge where his commitment level is yet but we have loved getting to know him and trying to help him find stability through Christ. He also thinks my name is just "Elder" and Elder Kumar's name is just "Kumar" gotta love that.

- Paul and Julian both came to sacrament with us on Sunday! That was awesome! I was a little worried when Paul asked if we could use wine instead of water... but he enjoyed the meeting and we set another lesson with him before he left. Julian stayed for both hours and we started fellowshipping him and his girlfriend with some young couples in the ward! Good things are coming.

BEST:

I listened to the best BYU speech called "The Four Steps on the Stairway to Heaven" by Dan Clark. Give it a listen! Not a read, a listen... I promise you will like it!

He tells a story of a NFL football player. Dan Clark presented a 12 inch tall stick that he asked if the player could jump over it. The player looked at him like "DUH, I can jump over that" and reluctantly stepped over the stick. Afterwards, Clark questioned the player "Why did you only jump 12 inches when we both know you are capable of jumping 38 inches off the ground?"

We should always be pushing ourselves. God expects our best and we should expect the best out of ourselves. Just because someone else "lowers the bar" for us, does not mean we need to lower our standards or expectations of ourselves. Push yourself, grow, and always move forward. This is how we can become all God wants us to be, this is how we transform.

"Work Hard, Keep the Commandments, Have a Positive Attitude and Show Gratitude"

- "Elder" 

...as Agustin would say