The Miracle of People

 

 

Hello Everyone!

This week was slower than last week but it happens. Up and down and all around but through it all God is at our side making sure we make it through! So our biggest struggle right now is finding new investigators! We've got a lot of potentials, people who are like call us... but not this week and we're out on the streets almost everyday but it was still not as fruitful as we would have liked this week. But we'll keep going!

We did have quite a few NC lessons though which was YAY! the best way to lose your teaching pool is to baptize them all so we're counting blessings not numbers. Caleb is doing great. When we reviewed lesson one with him we suggested he could read JS history in the Pearl of Great price if he had a desire to learn more, we suggested it as a kind of longish term project and he had it all read by the next day. He told us he had just sat and read for an hour straight and it was so cool too see the sheepish look on his face when he told us. "I just didn't want to stop." So happy for him, so happy. And then on Sunday he got the Aaronic Priesthood. In Branch Conference, so the meetings were combined and we got to watch and the smile on his face when they took their hands off his head... Words can not describe how beautiful it was. Worth every tear, every worry, every pain, all 9 months of his investigating, so worth it.

Robin is also doing really well. He had us over for dinner this week and while we were there we talked to him about the temple and family history in preparation for him to go to the temple on Saturday and he just lit up like a Christmas tree. And then on Saturday we got a text from him that started out with him saying that he wasn't able to find a ride to the church. (Where the temple car pool would meet.) he had asked Tommy, (Long term member) and Allen (The investigator who gives everyone else a ride to church and lives all the commandments but has told us that he doesn't want to join a church.) If they were going to the temple and the three of us all thought immediately... 'but Allen can't go to the temple why would Robin ask him?' And we were all worried he wasn't going to want to go but then the text followed up with. I'll just take the bus. And we were so excited! He texted us again later that day and told us all about it and was over the moon with excitement. Fantastic experience.

So Allen, Robin, and Caleb have all become good friends, in the last couple of months and we've been so hopeful for Allen, he's been coming to church, reading, praying, and has taken every single commandment with a 'yah, that makes sense.' And then this week we taught family history and temples, we finally found his problem. He told us he wasn't sure he believed in resurrection and in the necessity of baptism to get into heaven. It was a powerful lesson though and actually Caleb was there having stayed after his lesson as well as Cheryl, but the strongest presence I felt was a powerful feeling from the holy ghost urging me to promise him that he had ancestors who wanted Allen to know their names. The Spirit was strong and he committed to make a family history account.

That Sunday was Branch conference and the talks were all fantastic, Robin passed the sacrament again, and it was a great meeting, and then after the meeting was over, Allen turns to sister Chen as says, "I've decided I want to get baptized." (Later that night sister Chen had a fun time trying to find the English word for 'dumb founded') She tapped me on the shoulder and Allen repeated his words only in English this time... I had about the same look on my face. We both turned around and shook sister Moody and we repeated what Allen had said... She looked at us and looked at Allen who was smiling by that point and then looked back at us. We all looked over at Allen who said. "Thank you all for helping me get to this point." We were still speechless and Robin who was sitting on the other side of Allen was just like "Yah, Allen wants to get baptized!" And Caleb was sitting next to him nodding with an "it's about time" Look all over his face.

We then all had to go to the next class but needless to say it was one of the most beautiful days ever! We kept hearing snippets of their conversations as Robin explained that Allen would need an interview first and he and Caleb talked about Church. And our new converts are planning our Investigators baptism and I just about started crying right there!

Things aren't always like this but these weeks these beautiful moments of clarity where the whole plan of Salvation just makes sense. These are the reasons people go on missions. I can not even comprehend where I would be if I hadn't made the decision to come out here. I don't even want to think about it. Because next temple trip they are all going to go together and I've never felt such love for those little moments.

This gospel is the truth! There are prophets on the earth today who lead and guide this church under the direction of Jesus Christ the Son of the living God whose priesthood makes the ordinances and covenants possible so that we can all return to live with Him again.

Look for miracles, work for miracles, and you will find miracles.

Because They are all around you.

I love you all,

-Sister Skinner