🌬 Strong Winds
Buenas tardes my people!
As you see from the subject line, this past week we experienced some very strong wind. Hurricane Grace came in pretty hot and hit Cancun on Wednesday. Luckily by the time it hit us on Thursday, it wasn’t nearly as strong, but the center of Hurricane Grace passed right by Calkiní we still got some pretty insane wind and a TON of rain. Everyone was hyping it up so much, but it was honestly a little lame compared to what I thought it would be, but it was still epic. I love it when it rains here, because it means less heat 😁 The day after the Hurricane, we were hit by another storm that came from nowhere and it seemed much more like a Hurricane. The wind was way stronger and there was even more rain. Elder Barrientos and I happened to be far from our house, without rain jackets or umbrellas. We were literally soaked within the first 30 seconds. It was quite the adventure.
This week we also got hit by another type of strong wind, but much more figurative. The opposition we faced this week was on a whole nother level. I’m not going to detail everything, but a lot of the people we’re teaching hit some brick walls. The branch we cover in Halachó is super struggling and we went there to inspire the leaders, but it’s going to take a lot more work and patience before the church can grow there. We also got bashed by a Catholic woman. It aggravated me because she had obviously been fed misinformation about our church and what we believe, and did not have the full picture of its history (which is important to be able to fully understand it!). We tried to clear up the misinformation to no avail. She would not have it. I was low key triggered and ready to prove her wrong using just the Bible, but I realized that’s not what a true disciple of Jesus Christ would do, and I felt bad that my initial reaction was to bash back. It was a humbling experience.
Despite the opposition, we’re still out here grinding hard trying to do our best. I’m not gonna lie, this area is the hardest area I’ve been in, but it has taught me SO much and I’m never going to forget the incredible experiences I’ve had here. I’ll just say this, the Lord knows EXACTLY what he is doing. His plan is perfect. All of our experiences, the people we meet, the trials we pass through have a divine purpose: to give us experience and prepare us to return to our Maker. Sometimes we have to pass through the fiery furnace, but it is in the fervent heat, in those scorching flames that refine us and polish us to become better. I’ve personally experienced the refiner’s fire, and if you’re passing through your own personal refiner’s fire, just know that the Lord is making you a masterpiece!
Love you all! I hope you all have an epic week!
-Elder Gifford
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