Birthtism‏

Thank you all for your wonderful birthday wishes! Your love, support, and encouragement are always incredibly appreciated. I'm now twenty years old! The mark of a decade! Whoa.... I'm old.

I was going to hold off on the big news, but I just couldn't. Sofìa Ortiz has been baptized!!! It was a full-on miracle, but it happened! The date of her rebirth was the very same day that I was born twenty years back, which means that yes, we ate lots of cake and I made some delicious from scratch brownies (which actually just turned out mostly like cake). Also, Sofìa is just the coolest investigator- I mean Recent Convert! -ever, because she bought me a new shirt and a birthday card AND called me at like 7:50 in the morning to sing me happy birthday. It was super nice and we celebrated super well. I'm happy.

Lets tell the story of this though!

So, Sunday, she says no to baptism, but we stay firm, hopeful, and faithful, and hold the date.

Our next lesson is on Wednesday, and she was worse!!! We couldn't even bring the Spirit into the lesson for such a long time! But finally, we whittled down her defenses again with the Spirit and kept the date. It was just kind of a repeat of Sunday actually.

Thursday: I have to go to another area for the day so that Elder Jimenez, our District Leader, can give her the baptismal interview (keep in mind that she still says she's not ready for baptism, can't do it that Saturday).

Well, I didn't find out until Friday, but apparently Elder Jimenez was strongly Catholic as well before joining the church when he was like 16 years old. It was a tough decision for him too, and his parents still haven't followed his lead. But, he helped Sofìa so much. Hearing Elder Brown describe how it went was so strange, she sounded like a different person.

Friday: I'm back for the final lesson before the baptism, and lo and behold, a new person answered the door when we rang the doorbell (she's chuchi and actually has a doorbell). The Spirit had given her a mighty change of heart, and that because of her faith and willingness, and our fervent, desperate prayers to the Lord that He would grant her the strength she needed to make the decision to be baptized. She said amazing things that night, like that she couldn't say no, she couldn't resist the pull of the Spirit. While we explained further, she began to fidget even and she said it felt like she was on fire. We explained that this was simply fulfilling the promise God gave Oliver Cowdery in D&C 9, that his bosom would burn as a fire to confirm his decision if it were right. God confirmed her decision, and I could not deny it.

Just as things climaxed, she received a phone call from someone she pretty much hates, and had to have a twenty minute long conversation. Spirit dead. But, we ended things well, pointed out that Satan was trying to stop her, and kept on.

She was baptized the next day.

Friends and Family, God answers our prayers. I prayed harder than I ever have that this would happen, I worked for it, I held up every scripture promise I could find that might help to this woman joining the true church of God, and God heard my pleas. She was batpized by Elder Brown, and I was able to witness a true miracle. I testify that Moroni and his father Mormon did not lie, that God is a God of miracles, and that, because we still had faith, a miracle was performed this week. I bear witness that our efforts are meaningful; we can have hope. We can have faith. God will not leave us alone.

I bear this witness with so much joy! Thank you all for your prayers, for your faith and contributions! I love you all so much and know that your faith helped move this mountain and I thank you deeply. Have a wonderful week.

Elder Harris