Hello! Hello! Hello!
What a week of blessings and miracles! I wish I could just call each one of you and tell you about all the hearts that have been softened.. Because trying to email does not explain it well enough!
I'll just go day by day in this letter... you might want to grab a snack, because this is a long letter!
Last Monday night was the Quail Ridge Ward Trunk or Treat! There were so many people here! Lots of unfamiliar faces.. But every one is still kind of unfamiliar to me! Our investigator Susie was there, with her boyfriend and little girl, SoSo.. They had a blast!
On Tuesday our day was jammed packed! We met our next door neighbor, Norma, who is a "Do Not Contact" She invited us in and we visited with her for a little while.. She is in her 80's and says she has "been there done that" with regards to the whole "church" thing. That is what we are finding with many of the people who are on the "Do Not Contact" list.. they are old and tired.. It makes me realize how important it is to Endure to the End! Norma said we could come back to visit with her as long as we don't try to get her to come to church... I have hope for her! She just needs to know she is loved and missed,
Later we had a lesson with Susie.. we read in The Book of Mormon with her and she loves it! She was analyzing every verse and teaching us! The one concern she brought up was about marriage.. She is living with her boyfriend, Jay.. And she knows she will either have to move out or marry him.. She has no way to support herself if she moves out and she does not believe in marriage. She thinks it is just a piece of paper.. She's never seen a marriage work.. And from the World's perspective it is just a piece of paper.. But it is so much more! We told her our next lesson would be about the Family!
Tuesday night, we went to the Hymas' home.. Sister Hymas was inactive for a long long time, but is totally reactivated and has gone to the temple.. Brother Hymas on the other hand is very very inactive! He is a sweet old grump! We drop by there house every week or so for a couple of minutes, but this time was a game changer! We asked them if we could practice the lessons on them.. Sister Hymas let her husband decided.. He paused a moment.. and then very quietly said.. yes.. HE SAID YES!!! So we are going tonight to teach him!!! Missionaries have been working on him for years and years, and finally he is willing to hear a message from us! He always calls me "sweetheart" and gives me a good handshake! He's a sweet old grump, like I said!
On Wednesday, lots of good happened but the biggest highlight is when we went to teach Brother and Sister Honeycutt.. They are good active members, and we asked them if we could practice on them. Sister Honeycutt's son has just been deployed. On Wednesday was the day he left and Wednesday was the day we shared and reminded them of the gospel. She later told us that we were an answer to her prayers and that she was having a really hard day.. We needed to be there!
This past Thrusday we were able to meet and share a message with another inactive member that lives around the corner from us. It really amazes me how open people are to the missionaries. We had never met this lady before, but she told us all the things she has been and is struggling with. We were able to bring peace to her heart. I am so grateful for this calling.
Also, we met with Susan (different from Susie). Susan is Catholic and her mother was a Jew. She is a talker! We left her a pamphlet and told her to read it and call us back! Well later that night she called and asked us where our church was and at what time on Sunday.. She said she really hit it off with the member we brought and she would like to come to church! WHAT A BLESSING! I did not see that one coming!!!
So since it was Halloween, all the missionaries in the Las Vegas Valley went to the Mission Office! We watched Ephrim's Rescue! Okay - stop reading this letter and go and buy Ephrim's Rescue! It is SO good!!!! I am so grateful for all the pioneers! They sacrificed so much for all of us! I love this gospel so much!
On Friday, Now this is where it really gets crazy!!!
We went to visit a less active, Sister Rojas, and her nonmember boyfriend, Tommy, was with her. We got to know her and asked if we could teach her the lessons.. She leaned over to Tommy and asked if he'd like to listen to them.. And he said YES!!!!!! Yay!!!
THEN - We had a lesson with Susie, the one against marriage, and her boyfriend, Jay, and Jay's friend Art. Now if I had to describe Jay and Art to you I would say they are weather beaten, greasy car guys. They are rough around all the edges. But still very nice to us. The lesson was at the Barlow's house (the family with 15 kids) and we also had Brother Morris, our ward mission leader there. We began by reading The Family - A Proclamation to the World. Here is a link to the Proclamation -
http://www.lds.org/topics/family-proclamation READ IT! So we were going paragraph by paragraph.. And at first Jay was just trying to fight with us and put our message down. I don't blame him, I mean here we are, two 19 year old girls, telling these 40+ year old guy the way they are living their life is not pleasing to our Heavenly Father. But we kept going and we literally saw all three of there hearts go from being hard to softened by the end of our lesson. Art said the closing prayer and it was powerful. Art was crying. Jay was holding back tears. Susie was just soaking in the Spirit. It was amazing. One of the most powerful spiritual experiences I have ever witnessed or been apart of. Words cannot describe it.
Later on we had another amazing spiritual experience. Lily is less active, and we are starting to reactivate her. Her husband is not a member, his name is JD. We were able to have a lesson with them in the Day's home, an awesome family in our ward. We taught them the Restoration, which they were taught a couple months ago. However this time, we showed JD point by point that there really was a need for a Restoration, and we did that by reading scriptures from the Bible. It was powerful and JD really opened up. I am so grateful for the Spirit that guides and directs us!
Then on Saturday we had an awesome lesson with this less active, Mark, and his girlfriend Debra. He had told us earlier that his favorite hymn was "I Need Thee Every Hour"
http://www.lds.org/music/library/hymns/i-need-thee-every-hour?lang=eng Sister Nilson and I sang this song for him. Both Mark and Debra were in tears. The Spirit was so strong. It truly was amazing!
Yesterday was great also, I love the first Sunday of every month, because we are able to hear the testimonies of those around us in Sacrament Meeting. A few of the ladies talked about the impact they have seen in their families, because we are practicing the lessons on them. Sister Hymas even bore her testimony about her husband telling us we could teach him. It was amazing! JD, Lily, and AJ, their son, came to church! Lily even bore her testimony! Aww it was amazing!!
We got to see JD later on and read the introduction for The Book of Mormon! He is really excited to read more! Then, we went to Jason's, another investigator who is trying and not really succeeding at quitting smoking. But we gave him a "quit smoking program" and went there with two members. And after we committed Jason to do this program we all knelt and each said a prayer for Jason. Afterwards he gave away his cigarettes! And went into his fridge and poured all of his alcohol down the drain. It was awesome! I was so proud of him!!!
Well this is officially my longest letter ever.. But it sure was a week of blessings and miracles!!! I know that this week will be just as great!!!
Oh I also have to tell you that THIS FRIDAY November 8, 2013 - Carlos Monsalve - an investigator I taught in Robindale is getting baptized! The baptism will be a 6pm at 7670 Bruce St. The cross streets are Robindale and Bruce.. or Robindale and Spencer, You all are invited to come!!!!! And those of you who are close by I sure hope you do come!
