Como un Jefe.

Is anyone else freaking out?  No? Just me?  Well now I know you are all lying.  Because I can't be the only one that is freaking out.  Did I mention that I sometimes get hit by cars?  The good kind, though.  Oh, did I also mention there is a good kind of car to get hit by?  Well, there is.  It's the car that comes out of no where and smashes you flat over.  I guess it's not a real car.. Just realizations.  MASSIVE ones.  Every once in a while I will just be minding my own business and all of the sudden I think, "dang, I don't think they have cheese or bread in Guatemala!" And then it gets real!  (I think they actually do have cheese and bread.... at least I hope so.  If not, I'll be introducing it to them.)

Well now that THAT'S out of the way, I spreckon I oughta tell some fun stories.  The other day... no... it was a couple months ago... any who, I got to do a "dialogue" with some Evangelicals from California!  Crazy right?!  That's what I said!  My blessed roommate, Abby, is on a committee that lets her do fun things like that.. so she invited me to one!  It was four hours long and we had lunch and talked about our religions.  We were supposed to have a pleasant conversation about how our religions were actually a lot alike and clear up any confusion.  That's what we were supposed to do.... we did not...

I really felt bad about it!  In institute only a couple days earlier we had learned that Light and Truth can only be given by revelation when there is the Holy Ghost and a willing heart.  I would draw you a picture but I don't know how to work The Internets like that.  So I was going in there thinking, "we absolutely have at least two of the three things to help them receive revelation.  We have the truth, and I can't imagine why the Holy Ghost wouldn't be there!"  So we all got to talking and almost immediately I realized we only had one of the three things... Light and Truth... They came to convert us (we kind of came to convert them too... but whatere!) they actually thought they were coming to teach us about their "true" church.

It was a very contentious time and I left with a headache.  One guy from BIOLA (Bible Institute of Los Angeles) talked for probably three out of the four hours.  They just kept telling us how people will never be able to create worlds and its taking away the glory of God if we think that.  He also said that when we die, we will just sing God's praises and glory Him.  Which, that idea didn't seem horrible, because that's what we will be doing... Except I don't believe we will be sitting around singing to Him. We tried to explain that just like an earthly father has children and those children have children, the father is still the father.  He didn't lose that title or anything that comes along with it.  Heck, that father WANTS his kids to grow up and create just like he did.  Same goes for Heavenly Father.  He finds joy in His creations!  And how awesome will it be to glory Him by creating!?

The BIOLA folks didn't like it one bit.. They also didn't like the three degrees of glory.  Because, "why would someone want to go to the Terrestrial and Telestial kingdoms and not be with God forever?!" Exactly!  We tried to explain that no one actually HAS to go there.  We hope everyone lives worthy enough to go to the Celestial kingdom.  God wouldn't create a plan that where most of His children fail.  He loves us too much for that.

Even though it was stressful, it was good to have that kind of experience.  Not every missionary experience will result in baptism.  We can only hope that we planted a seed in their hearts that will make them want to know more.   I do know the BIOLA group are good people with good hearts.. One girl emailed me the next day apologizing for what they said and that they really do love all of us.

I learned from that experience and it made me more excited and nervous for my mission (I leave in 15 days if anyone's counting...).  Welp, I guess I'll just brush up on my spanish really quickly... ¿Dondé está el baño? Como un jefe.  Adios amigos.