Answering Prayers through the Spirit

So I know I've been slacking... but hey, I've been busy!

Miracles:

1) Sebahat, our Turkish investigator, got baptized on Sunday! What?! The best part is that she doesn't speak a lick of English, and that our translator is a 5 month convert himself. It really shows that even though we can't speak directly to her, the Spirit testifies at moments of truth.

2) I got transferred to an Office Elder. This is a miracle, (not because I got transferred -I'll miss my old area-) because with my sleep problems its a well-suited job. Being the Tech Nerd that I am, I do have a skill set that is great for this calling! Its also a miracle because two nights before the transfer meeting, someone else was going to be called to this position, until President received a prompting otherwise!

3) I now have more options that we are trying that may solve my sleep issues! We are seriously praying and considering every option we have. The Lord knows what I am going through, and He knows the best solution. You know, prayer is a simple thing that often gets overlooked. As I'm struggling with life in general, my first thought may include prayer. I dismiss thoughts like that too easily. How much more blessed would I be if I followed that prompting every time I was grateful or in need? Prayer is so amazing. When I'm in bed, and I can't get up in the morning, I say a prayer. Something as simple as, "Please help me have the strength to get up today." Miraculously enough, I get moving. I will always be grateful for prayer.

Disappointments and A Little Bit of Service

We walked into a family's home with anticipation for the lesson we had
prepared on the Plan of Salvation. We felt extremely excited, and we
knew that if this family felt the Spirit during this lesson, that they
would desire to know more. Once we were seated at the table, the
Sister made a comment about "enjoying life especially while you are
young" and boom, the Spirit was gone. We were definitely thrown off
guard, but we tried to reestablish the Spirit in the setting. This
Sister wasn't having any of it. The comments she made about drinking,
partying, and messing around truly kept disrupting our message, and
more importantly, the Spirit. Her jokes were crude, but we tried to
redirect the conversation again and again. In a sigh of
disappointment, my companion and I politely excused ourselves, and
trekked onward towards our next appointment.

The Spirit is SO important when it comes to teaching. Man's wisdom is
nothing compared to the might and the intelligence of God. That is
something that I've learned out here on this mission. I've come to
rely on The Lord so much out here. He truly knows how to guide us, to
help others come closer to Him. He knows each of us individually, and
helps us work together as a whole.

We've had some chilly nights of late. As we were walking along to an
appointment, we saw a woman in her mid 30's standing at the bus stop.
We started talking to her and found out that her name was Dawn. She
was living on the streets and had only her clothing, a coat, a
backpack, and beanie. We taught her about the peace the Book of Mormon
brings. She gladly accepted one. As she reached out, I noticed she
didn't have any gloves. I realized how cold her hands must be and a
prompting came to take off my gloves and to give them to her. I did so
and we continued on to our appointment. I felt that glow inside that
comes when you do the right thing. It was a good night.

Sleepless Nights and Bright Screens

Writing on this blog might be a little tough for a few weeks or months. The reason being that we just got iPads! But the downside is that we don't have access to our blogs on them. So we still have to hop on a computer of some sort to post anything. But I'll do my best!

The miracle I'm going to focus on today is the iPads! We were told in December that we were getting iPads. December went by... no iPads. We then expected them in January... no iPads. Surely they would come be here by the beginning of February. Nope. Finally, the last week of February we (the Mobile Device Specialists) get our iPads! Miracle! They are such great tools. We have our Area Book wherever we go. Our bags are three times lighter. We have access to all of the Gospel Library. FaceTime and Skype are available. I'm super excited for the Work of the Lord. It truly is hastening!

As for rejection... well. I guess the biggest hold up right now is the fact that I'm getting terrible sleep. I'm getting rejected by my own body. I'll go to bed on time, and wake up two hours later. I'll try falling back asleep but even if I do, its very restless. I've used medicine, I've tried reading myself to sleep, I've listened to instrumental classical music, I've really tried it all. I'm tired all the time. It affects my missionary life style, but I'm working on it. I keep trying. Thats what matters.

Empty Houses

I guess I'll begin with the bad news first. Our appointment fell through. Its one thing for your investigator to tell you they don't want to meet with you. Its completely another, when they don't show up, and you had reminded them a day previous. It makes it more personal. When they call you or text you, and say something along the lines of "I can't meet this week." or "I'm not interested". At least you know they care, or they wouldn't tell you. But when you show up to their house, and they aren't there, you just feel sad. You feel disappointment. Especially when you were so stoked to teach them about the Gospel and how to have a happier life. But its okay. When they are ready, they will let us know.

Now, this next week, we get iPads in our mission! I am so excited. As one of the four Technology Specialists in our mission, I get the training first so I can go throughout the mission and train them on how to use their iPads effectively and efficiently on a mission. Technology has always been my sort of thing. I've always been extremely good at figuring stuff out. I am grateful for the opportunity that the Lord has given me to help others come unto Him through technology!

Bad Impressions and Valentine's Day Packages

So you know those people that just seem scared of missionaries? Well, we ran into one of them yesterday. I was on exchanges with Elder Capt (I've known him for awhile from back home) and we were walking to an investigator's house. We noticed an older lady walking the opposite direction, and so being the gentlemen that we are, we greeted her and asked how her day was going. Her response was, "Why are you so rude? You missionaries just attack me. You can't just walk by without talking to people. You don't respect me, you just attack me." After apologizing a couple hundred times, we walked away in wonder. It makes me wonder how many people out in the world have that impression, and I wonder what we, as missionaries, can do to help those people understand who we are and what we do.

Thankfully, I'm thankful. I received something at my door step a few days ago. It was my Valentine's Day package from my mother. Any missionary loves receiving mail, and it made my week. I love my mom. She is truly the best. I am so grateful for her, and for the example she is to me. Before my mission, she was running a family -which would include making us food, picking up kids, and dropping them off-, helping my dad in any way, shape, or form, magnifying her calling as a Relief society president, cleaning our house, and managing the family cabin at Sundance. She's still doing all of that, and taking care of a missionary out in the field. I love her, and I am so grateful for all she does. I love you Mom! Thank you for being the best mother ever. I can't wait to speak with you on Mother's Day!

Snow Storms

Alright, I know I didn't post the last two days.... Sorry! We had a major snow storm and everything was shut down! We got 10"-12" of snow. That's a lot for most Virginians. Because of the snow, we were provided many opportunities to go out and do service. I'm guessing we probably looked a lot like this:

There were so many miracles! That included everything from handing out Book of Mormons to teaching people who we are. We met many individuals who were shoveling out the snow from around their cars. Some told us no, because they didn't want help from Mormon Missionaries. Haha, we would try and convince them. We even had a guy yell at us because we just started helping him!

We did so much shoveling. And the snow was wet. I swear that I gained at least 10 lbs in muscle mass from how much show we shoveled. (Either that, or I've just eaten a lot since then). We were able to help a ton of older couples, and some single mothers. Dorothy is a single mom, and we shoveled out her car. She invited us back over later to talk to her about what we do. When we went back over, we gave her a Book of Mormon and she told us that she would read it!

I love the Service that my Heavenly Father let us do!

Miracles and Rejections

If you had a miracle everyday, how would you feel? Now lets turn that question the opposite direction. Would you give up if you got rejected everyday?

I am a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ. I serve God and others everyday here in the Washington D.C. South Mission. My purpose is to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end.

As I'm doing so, I get the privelege and opportunity to observe miracles happen before my very eyes. Even though I see many miracles, both big and small, the message that I carry is rejected constantly. I thought it would be a good idea for others to see what I see. I am now have decided that my expectations are to have at least one miracle a day and to be rejected at least once each day. Hopefully I don't have to be rejected, but if I do, I plan to report it.

Last night, Elder White and I went to see a Less-Active member named Hector. He lives in an apartment complex that has a lock out. We had phoned up to his room without an answer, and so we bowed our heads and prayed. As we prayed that we would be able to find a way in, we heard someone come in the front door of the building, and better yet, we heard the keys in their hand. We quickly ended our prayer with an "amen" and we were let inside. We talked to David (he's the one with the keys) and we traveled up in the elevator with him to the fifth floor.

We got to Hector's door and we knocked once, twice, and then a third time. After the third time, I could hear a TV on inside. Sadly, and disappointedly, we walked back to the elevator and decended back to the first floor. As we exited the elevator, we almost bumped into a gal who was about 25-26ish. Elder White complimented her dreadlocks which were tied in a ponytail behind her head. (I've always found it interesting how conversations can be started). We found out that her name was Brittney and that she was Christian. We were able to give her a Book of Mormon and our number within a five minute conversation.

I am so grateful for the Lord and for the little miracles He lets me see. If David hadn't let us in, we would have never found Brittney. Despite Hector's rejection of our visit, we still were able to perform the Lord's work. I love this Gospel. I am grateful that I have a chance to help spread the "Good News" to others. I will always be grateful for the strength that I am given each day to continue to preach the word of God. I say this today, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.