Elder James Park

God is close

It has been a wonderful week! I must say “God is good, all the time!” I remembered these words that my trainer from Argentina taught me 7 months ago. It seems surreal as I am now also a trainer. I am grateful for this opportunity to learn from him and to grow as a leader.

This week I was able to participate in multiple intercambios with leaders and also with the Élders of my district. I am so grateful for them and the new things I was able to learn and to begin applying to my everyday life. Élder Prendergast taught me how to shrug off excuses and trials of others and to help them see the good and God's hand in their lives, and Élder Lewis taught me about the importance of patience and how to bear testimony in the moments that will impact others most.

Something new that I was given the opportunity to do was give a talk in church for my new ward here in Cañete. My talk went well, and after I had finished, we listened to a high councilman speak about the reality of God. I was especially impressed as he shared about the sacrament, and he shared an idea that had never crossed my mind.

He explained that each week the priests give the prayer over the sacrament table, so that those priests are not the people actually blessing the sacrament. While yes, the priests are offering the prayer, if we look a little deeper into the words of the prayer found in Moroni 4:3, it says, “O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread” The high councilman then purposed the question who is performing the action of blessing the sacrament? Is it not God, our Eternal Father?

The high councilman then asked another question that hit me as the spirit felt in the room had been so strong. He asked, “If God is blessing the sacrament each and every week and in order to bless something the person performing the action of ‘blessing’ must be present, then where is God during this time?” Is he not closer than we realize? Is he not present at that table placed next to the pulpit in a place where everyone present in the sacrament room can see?

I am not too sure if this spiritual thought makes a whole lot of sense, but I just wanted to briefly testify that as I have been out serving a mission, I have come to better understand that God really is closer than we think. He is present in our daily lives, and we can feel His love if we stop and take a second to let His spirit fill our hearts and minds.

I will continue to keep each and every one of you in my prayers! Take care this week 🙏!

-Élder Park 🇨🇱🫶🏼🫰🏼