Chapter 21: The Light at the End of the Tunnel
- Amber Prior
- Aug 12
- 7 min read
August 11, 2025
Weeks in the mission: 25 Companion: Elder Garcia Area: Riverside Ward: Mission
———————————————
Hello everybody! Welcome to chapter 21. This is going to be a shorter email since I'm only covering since last Wednesday, because that was the last P-day. We did a lot of work in between that time. Serving under the Lord is difficult, but so incredibly fulfilling to the soul.
———————————————
🌟 Miracle Highlight 🌟
There's a reason for the title of this email. It's from the miracle this week.
We were on our way to an appointment when we saw him sitting on the curb and so we said hi. There was a bike turned upside down in front of him, and it looked like he was working on it. He asked if we had a bike pump.
We looked at each other. We thought of the bike pump back at our apartment. We told him to wait there, and we'd be back in a few minutes to grab it for him.
We returned, and as we pumped up his tires, we got to know more of his story. His name is Walter. Turns out his wife was a member, but she passed away, and it's been downhill for him since then. Drugs, homelessness, alcohol— all those things in the mists of darkness.
He told us: "I found the source for drugs before I found the church."
He was humbled. He wanted to turn his life around. We got him on the phone with the bishop of the English ward, and they spoke and they're going to be in contact.
He has to go back to county jail for a week for his last period, but when he gets out, he should have help. The guy also has our number that he can call.
Moments like these are the reasons why I'm a missionary.
Walter has been through so much darkness. Now, finally, gradually, the light awaits him at the end of his dark tunnel.
———————————————
🙏 Prayer request 🙏
Will you please include the following friends of ours in your prayers? You have no idea how much it helps and how many miracles we see out here.
Jonathan Layva. Our friend that's been on date for 5 weeks now hasn’t showed up to church for the last 3. He keeps saying he'll come, and then doesn't show up. We stopped by yesterday before church and called him and everything, but it was like he disappeared off the face of the earth. I already asked him if this is something he actually wants and he said "yeah," but his actions say otherwise. We'll seek the Lord's council, but it sounds like we need to pause him for a while until he's ready.
Steven Ishmael. He is also on date, and we stopped by Sunday morning too. He answered the door and said he wasn't going to go today. We told him if he didn't come, his baptism will have to be postponed and he said that’s fine. We're seeking the Lord's council on how we can best help him understand the eternal importance of what we're offering him.
Mateo Nicolas. He is as solid as ever. Shows up to every English class and every sports night each week. He's very funny and we've become good friends with him. And he's reading in the Book of Mormon and watching the videos every day. We're trying to help him realize to put God before his job. And if he does, God will bless him far more than he can understand.
———————————————
🗓️ Daily Events 🗓️
🔸️Wednesday Temple day! We did an endowment session at 8:30am. It was pretty great to feel the spirit in there. The rest of the day was kind of crammed. During shopping, Elder Garcia's MSF card couldn't activate, so I had to pay to cover for him. Hopefully we can get it working soon. We made a stop at Ross and I got myself a nice bed sheet and a large comfort blanket with the $25 gift card that was sent to me by family. I also had a lot of fun playing Elder Watson in pickleball today. We also had a HUGE turnout in English class tonight. And afterwards, we taught Mateo and showed him President Nelson's message: "Think Celestial!" My bike tire also popped when I jumped onto a curb. We have to go grab a new one tomorrow.
🔸️Thursday A good day. We had a scheduled lesson with Janet, a friend we met last week. We knocked on her door but she didn't answer. Just as we were about to leave, she came walking down the sidewalk, returning from work. We talked to her about baptism and the covenant path. We also put Steven on plan for baptism on the 24th of August! We're really excited for him. If he follows through with his commitments, he'll be well off. Elder Garcia is going on his first exchange tonight. He'll be with our ZL, Elder Dayton for a whole 24 hours. I'm excited for him to experience what it's like working with another missionary.
🔸️Friday I didn't journal today, so I'll see what I can remember. It was exchange day, and I was with the other ZL, Elder Barker. We had an amazing companion study in the morning! And we talked to many people throughout the day, and got many numbers and contact information. God is preparing so many people. It's wonderful to see. I'm proud to say that we got a sports night started here in the Mission ward in Riverside. I remember when we first brought it up during a meeting with the ward mission leaders. Today was the first day of sports night, and there was a fantastic turnout. Many members AND friends were there. It was a fantastic time playing volleyball and then soccer! It's only going to get better from here. This will be HUGE for both ward unity and missionary work.
🔸️Saturday Wow, what a great day! I've been so short on time that I missed yesterday's entry. I must be quicker with my entries. There simply isn't enough time. We saw so many miracles today. We were so busy that we never got the chance to do personal study. We went out right at 8:00am to catch everyone at the park today. We talked to several dozen people and got a lot of numbers. A really nice guy bought some street tacos for us, which were absolutely delicious. His name was Anthony. Hopefully we can teach him a lesson this week. We spent a whole 3 hours there before coming back to the apartments for lunch. And for lunch today, we actually got permission from President Hendrickson to have lunch with Elder Garcia's family. They were in California for the weekend! I got to meet them and talk about amazing things we've experienced in the mission field and the miracles we've seen. His family is just wonderful. We taught Jonathan today again and he is still down! He's just super busy is all, but he told us he was going to make it to church this time! His car is fixed and there shouldn't be any other obstacles.
🔸️Sunday A great Sunday. It's strange; last Sunday felt like 2 days ago. We did lots of work for the Lord today. We got a ride with Elder Snow and Bailey to go stop by our friends Jonathan and Steven. Both of them are on date and they live 2 houses away from each other. Sadly, Jonathan was nowhere to be seen and Steven said he didn't want to come, even when we said if he didn't, we'd have to postpone his baptism. He had just woken up. However, we can always count on good ol' Cruz! He showed up to church. Hasn't missed a single week. I got to pass the sacrament as well. I found out later that a friend that was coming to church called me in the middle of sacrament, because he couldn't find the entrance. He wound up going home. By the time I called him, he was already home. We'll get him next week. He's an awesome guy. During the day, we got fed by a nice family who made some really good meat. We shared a message with them and we should be coming back on Wednesday.
———————————————
☀️ Spiritual thought ☀️
This morning, during personal study, I was reading in Philippians chapter 2, verses 14-15. It reads:
14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings: 15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world. – Philippians 2:14–15
This advice from Paul called my attention. His council from 2,000 years ago applies just as much today as it did back then. We live in a world which the prophets have said is in a worse condition than Sodom and Gomorrah. We are surrounded by temptation and distractions on all sides. Voices from the outside world and the internet enter into homes and drift family relationships apart.
The fight today is a mental and spiritual one. It's so easy to "not die" nowadays. I've seen countless of people who simply choose to live on the streets. There is food and water all around. As far as the physical world is concerned, we are better than ever.
I might echo the words of Paul when he said:
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. – Ephesians 6:12
That is the case today. As followers of Jesus Christ and members of His restored church, we have a commission to live the gospel. To let the light of Christ prevail in our whole lives. That we may put on the shield of faith, and be a light and a beacon to those who are seeking hope, and a stumbling block for those who are malicious and wish to do evil.
When we actually live the gospel, we naturally want to share it with others. The Spirit of God prevails in our lives. I invite everyone reading this to ask themselves if there's anything preventing them from fully living the gospel of Jesus Christ.
———————————————
📸 Photos 📸
Comments