October 9, 2017 -- Hurricanes and Priesthood Blessings
Hey Y'all!
This week has been beyond blessed. There are so many things to talk about I don't even know where to start!
First of all, Elder Calvin lied to us. He said he was going to be staying in Fox Run but he actually got transferred! It was a little sad to see him go. When your district is two companionship who share the same area and you see/work with them almost everyday, you get pretty close. Plus, Elder Calvin came out at the same time as me. But he will do great things in his new area, and we have Elder Morgan now in Fox Run, and he just came here from serving in Troy at a college campus, which is so cool because we are trying to get work started up at UWF campus. Now both championships have someone in them with real-life college experience (Elder Hirz and I) and missionary college experience (Sister Adams and Elder Morgan).
The beginning of the week was pretty slow. We were struggling to set appointments, and no one we tried contacting was very interested. There was one lady that we were teaching, Frances, who we taught on Tuesday that we invited to pray, and then we waited there with our heads bowed for over an hour. She never did pray, but we were not discouraged. If some minor neck pain is needed to help someone learn about Christ, I will gladly take it. We started teaching an amazing girl named Trellini, (pronounced like Melanie except with a T) who is actually a minister. She ordered a free Bible from lds.org, and then while she was chatting with some missionaries in Salt Lake, they offered her a free Book of Mormon as well. She asked what it was and they told her that it is another Testament of Christ. She told them that she sees no reason not to read a book that testifies of Christ, and invited us over to talk to her about it. It was so amazing to talk to her and see her faith. While we were talking about the Book of Mormon, she told us that it makes sense that God would speak to all of His children, and she is excited to read it and to learn more.
On Friday had a lesson with our recent convert, Sister Sadler, about Patriarchal blessings. The stake patriarch came, and he explained what they are and how they work and what they mean much better than we ever could! For those of you who don't know what those are, you can look them up on lds.org and get more information. Sister Sadler is so excited to receive hers, hopefully soon!
We also met a woman who is apostolic, but was glad to let us into her house to talk about Christ. We offered her a Book of Mormon, which she refused, but she said something so sweet afterwards. She told us, "now girls, I don't want you to be discouraged because I didn't accept your Book. I don't need the Book of Mormon, but there are people out there who do, I am sure. Go find them!" Then she sent us on our way with a big hug and cold water bottles. as we left her home, we talked about how sweet that was, but how much we wish she could have understood that we all need the Book of Mormon. The peace that it brings, the understanding of things divine, and the clarity it brings to the Gospel of Christ are universal, and every single one of God's children can benefit from them.
Later that day we were going to go do some service for a woman in the ward, Sister Wise, who hasn't been coming to church in a while. When we knocked on her door, she opened it in hysterics. She told us that her friend had recently passed away and that she hadn't had a rest or anything to eat in days. She was shaking and she could barely stand. We offered to call the Elders to come give her a priesthood blessing, and she accepted. While we waited for the Elders to come, she cleaned her kitchen and talked to her about the specifics of her situation. When the Elders arrived, she received an absolutely glorious blessing that could have only come from God. When Elder Hirz spoke, he talked about things so specific to her situation that there was no way he could have known or we could have told him. After the blessing, Sister Wise noticed that and pointed it out to all of us, and we agreed. We told her that God was mindful of her, and that He truly knows her and her needs, and she triumphantly agreed, "Yeah He does!" The Elders left and we stayed and served her and talked with her for another hour. When we got there she was in hysterics, completely unable to function or speak. When we left she was literally singing, laughing, and dancing around her kitchen with her daughter. I cannot express how much I love I felt from the Lord in that home. If I ever had a doubt that God know us, that He loves us, that He can make us whole when we need Him, those doubts were destroyed by the love of God that I witnessed in the home of Sister Wise.
After this experience we had to go home and hunker down, because there was a hurricane coming. I got to experience a little baby hurricane, just like I wanted! We sat for hours, watching the palm trees battle the wind and the rain outside, and talked about General Conference, our choice to serve a mission, and just about every other subject under the sun. We had to stay in until 1 on Sunday as well (church had been cancelled due to the storm) and we were worried we wouldn't be able to do much work for the Lord because of the loss of time. We prayed that we would be able to find those whom God has prepared with what little time we had, and God heard our prayers. We found 4 new investigators and set 2 baptismal dates that day- and God made it all possible.
I wish I could express how much I know God loves us. How individually He knows us. How important we are to Him. The the middle of hurricanes, personal turmoil, and unbelievable heartache, God always gives us exactly what we need to make it through. There is nothing like His love, because it can heal us. It makes us more than we ever imagined we could be, greater than any mountain or panic or fear. It makes us whole. We can feel that as we read the Book of Mormon, as we turn to God and realize that He has so much more to show us, so much more light and life and eternity to help us see. I hope you can all see and feel a little bit of that too.
That is all for now I suppose. The Lord is so good. He can change your life if you let Him. He truly has changed mine.
Love you all- and please read the Book of Mormon.
This week has been beyond blessed. There are so many things to talk about I don't even know where to start!
First of all, Elder Calvin lied to us. He said he was going to be staying in Fox Run but he actually got transferred! It was a little sad to see him go. When your district is two companionship who share the same area and you see/work with them almost everyday, you get pretty close. Plus, Elder Calvin came out at the same time as me. But he will do great things in his new area, and we have Elder Morgan now in Fox Run, and he just came here from serving in Troy at a college campus, which is so cool because we are trying to get work started up at UWF campus. Now both championships have someone in them with real-life college experience (Elder Hirz and I) and missionary college experience (Sister Adams and Elder Morgan).
The beginning of the week was pretty slow. We were struggling to set appointments, and no one we tried contacting was very interested. There was one lady that we were teaching, Frances, who we taught on Tuesday that we invited to pray, and then we waited there with our heads bowed for over an hour. She never did pray, but we were not discouraged. If some minor neck pain is needed to help someone learn about Christ, I will gladly take it. We started teaching an amazing girl named Trellini, (pronounced like Melanie except with a T) who is actually a minister. She ordered a free Bible from lds.org, and then while she was chatting with some missionaries in Salt Lake, they offered her a free Book of Mormon as well. She asked what it was and they told her that it is another Testament of Christ. She told them that she sees no reason not to read a book that testifies of Christ, and invited us over to talk to her about it. It was so amazing to talk to her and see her faith. While we were talking about the Book of Mormon, she told us that it makes sense that God would speak to all of His children, and she is excited to read it and to learn more.
On Friday had a lesson with our recent convert, Sister Sadler, about Patriarchal blessings. The stake patriarch came, and he explained what they are and how they work and what they mean much better than we ever could! For those of you who don't know what those are, you can look them up on lds.org and get more information. Sister Sadler is so excited to receive hers, hopefully soon!
We also met a woman who is apostolic, but was glad to let us into her house to talk about Christ. We offered her a Book of Mormon, which she refused, but she said something so sweet afterwards. She told us, "now girls, I don't want you to be discouraged because I didn't accept your Book. I don't need the Book of Mormon, but there are people out there who do, I am sure. Go find them!" Then she sent us on our way with a big hug and cold water bottles. as we left her home, we talked about how sweet that was, but how much we wish she could have understood that we all need the Book of Mormon. The peace that it brings, the understanding of things divine, and the clarity it brings to the Gospel of Christ are universal, and every single one of God's children can benefit from them.
Later that day we were going to go do some service for a woman in the ward, Sister Wise, who hasn't been coming to church in a while. When we knocked on her door, she opened it in hysterics. She told us that her friend had recently passed away and that she hadn't had a rest or anything to eat in days. She was shaking and she could barely stand. We offered to call the Elders to come give her a priesthood blessing, and she accepted. While we waited for the Elders to come, she cleaned her kitchen and talked to her about the specifics of her situation. When the Elders arrived, she received an absolutely glorious blessing that could have only come from God. When Elder Hirz spoke, he talked about things so specific to her situation that there was no way he could have known or we could have told him. After the blessing, Sister Wise noticed that and pointed it out to all of us, and we agreed. We told her that God was mindful of her, and that He truly knows her and her needs, and she triumphantly agreed, "Yeah He does!" The Elders left and we stayed and served her and talked with her for another hour. When we got there she was in hysterics, completely unable to function or speak. When we left she was literally singing, laughing, and dancing around her kitchen with her daughter. I cannot express how much I love I felt from the Lord in that home. If I ever had a doubt that God know us, that He loves us, that He can make us whole when we need Him, those doubts were destroyed by the love of God that I witnessed in the home of Sister Wise.
After this experience we had to go home and hunker down, because there was a hurricane coming. I got to experience a little baby hurricane, just like I wanted! We sat for hours, watching the palm trees battle the wind and the rain outside, and talked about General Conference, our choice to serve a mission, and just about every other subject under the sun. We had to stay in until 1 on Sunday as well (church had been cancelled due to the storm) and we were worried we wouldn't be able to do much work for the Lord because of the loss of time. We prayed that we would be able to find those whom God has prepared with what little time we had, and God heard our prayers. We found 4 new investigators and set 2 baptismal dates that day- and God made it all possible.
I wish I could express how much I know God loves us. How individually He knows us. How important we are to Him. The the middle of hurricanes, personal turmoil, and unbelievable heartache, God always gives us exactly what we need to make it through. There is nothing like His love, because it can heal us. It makes us more than we ever imagined we could be, greater than any mountain or panic or fear. It makes us whole. We can feel that as we read the Book of Mormon, as we turn to God and realize that He has so much more to show us, so much more light and life and eternity to help us see. I hope you can all see and feel a little bit of that too.
That is all for now I suppose. The Lord is so good. He can change your life if you let Him. He truly has changed mine.
Love you all- and please read the Book of Mormon.
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