Spring Flowers and The Sower

 April Showers have brought May flowers here in Chula Vista.  On our morning walk, we encountered some beautiful scenes that I will share with you!

Missionary work in Chula Vista has its many ups and downs - in an amazing way, it is a living parable as taught by the Savior Himself in the Parable of the Sower:

Mark 4:3-8 "Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:  And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.  And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:  But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.  And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred."

The young Missionaries recently taught a very interested young lady that we were privileged to help teach.  She was "golden" & expressed genuine interest in being baptized.  A baptismal date was set & the Missionaries were elated.  After setting up another appointment to teach, they suddenly had a problem reaching her - in fact, they have not been able to contact her now for a couple weeks & she has "ghosted" them.  No explanation or reasons!!  It appears that the "seed" fell by the wayside where a heart was not really prepared!  It could have been "stony ground" with no root that suddenly withered away for some unknown affliction, persecution, or anti influence - we may never know!!

Another young lady being taught by the Missionaries for months now delayed indefinitely her baptismal date because she wasn't really ready for the commitment yet!  We believe that she really didn't have "root" because she seemed to be more converted to the missionaries rather than The Church of Jesus Christ.

Other "investigators" or "friends" seem to lose interest and stop progressing possibly because of the "cares of this world".  The commitment seems a little too daunting or some of the cares of the world are being put ahead of the things of God in our actions, priorities, or our thinking!

However, occasionally, one of their "friends" makes it through the gauntlet of opposition when their hearts are good ground & they bear the joyful fruit of the gospel.  One of these choice young converts is Eric Sadaka.  Eric listened to the gospel message back in September of 2023, saw & felt sweetness as the Spirit bore witness to him of its truthfulness.  He studied & prayed faithfully & accepted the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, getting baptized in October of 2023.  He is humble & exceptionally grateful to all who are helping him along the path.  He received the Aaronic Priesthood and started passing & blessing the sacrament soon after joining the Church - he went on a Temple baptism trip to the LA Temple with the Ward - little by little integrating himself with others along the covenant path.  He started dating an LDS girl from Ecuador, fell in love, and married her a couple weeks ago!  She is applying for US Citizenship.  Both of them have the desire to be sealed in the Temple as soon as Eric has been a Church member a year, and are preparing for this next step of discipleship.  They are so happy!!  Today was another milestone for Eric as I gratefully accepted his wish to confer upon him the Melchizedek Priesthood and ordain him an Elder.  It is such a joyful feeling to see someone accept the gospel of Jesus Christ & progress along the covenant path!!