It was a great week this week! Although it seems like whenever we have a good couple of days, 1 day everything has to fall through! That is just the life of a missionary!
1. We have an awesome new investigator and he is so solid! His name is Cornbread! Haha, yes, he actually he goes by Cornbread but his name is Travis and he works with a less active man that just returned to church. He saw the amazing change that happened when this guy came back and he wants that in his life now. He has an 8 month old and really wants to have his life be on the right track. It is so amazing how much he has been prepared. I'm excited to see him again!
2. The day after, we didn't get too much done and we were about to head home but elder Peterson had to make a pit stop... (at a zone conference they told us we needed to be drinking A LOT more water than we have been drinking!) But anyways, we stopped at a little southern restaurant called Smokquees which is so good! As we were leaving we saw a member in the parking lot who was leaving but offered to buy our dinner! We did not dare deny her the blessings that she would receive so we graciously accepted! Then as we were sitting waiting for our supper in walks Cornbread! Imagine that, it was perfect so we had a nice little supper with him and just talked about normal stuff. He told us that he had been reading in the Book of Mormon the night that we had been there! He also told us that as he drove by the restaurant that he had heard a voice say "go in and get some food" so he did it! As he was leaving he told us how much he enjoyed it!
3. We had another cool experience. A few weeks ago I got a gift card that a missionary that used to serve here found in his wallet to another Southern restaurant named AJ's. So i decided to take Elder Peterson, Browne and Parsons out. So we went and ate one after noon because they have a great fried chicken buffet! And as I went to pay I got to talking to the cashier and she was the sweetest woman and as I gave her the gift card instead of using the money she put an extra 25 on there and said she just wanted to help out where she could. An awesome lady and hopefully when we go back we can have a good gospel conversation with her!
4. Kim is another investigator we met with an interesting story. As we walked by she was talking on the phone and yelled at us to come in. We did as we were commanded and she told us that she was a nurse and had a very sick cancer patient in the back room and she wanted us to pray for him. So we did just that and prayed for Mr. Cunningham who could not have weighed more than 80 pounds. I offered a simple fervent prayer that his suffering would be lessened at this time. She was very grateful and gave us some deer sausage and we ate it that night with cheese grits and a fried egg (ya, I'm a southerner now). We returned a few days later and found out he died the night of our last visit. We offered our condolences and read parts of Alma chapter 40 which talks about where the soul goes after this life, she was so touched and loved it so much she wants to learn more and can't wait to see what we have to offer!
5. We had an awesome zone conference, that is when the missionaries in the area meet together, and we learned a lot and it is like a pep rally for us to get us inspired and get us out doing what we need to do! We talked about guess what again! FAMILY HISTORY!!! It was super informative and I caught the vision! President Smith, our leader, gave a powerful sermon on why the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does family history work! It was awesome! He read some scriptures that I want to give to y'all. First he started off with the need for us all to be baptized. Matthew 3 clearly states that every person to enter the Kingdom of God must be baptized but we know many die with out that chance to do that! In Luke 23:43 the lord says that today you will be with me in paradise to the thief on the cross but if we look in john 20:17 says that as he talked with Mary he says he has not gone to heaven yet. where was he for these three days between his death and him showing him self to Mary! He said himself that he was going to paradise! 1 peter 3:19 and 1 peter 4:6 both state where he was! He was in preaching to the spirits in spirit prison! Well why would he want to do that? 1 cor15:29 talks about the early church of Christ participating in the practice of vicarious baptism for the dead. The Lord was preparing a way for all the souls that had not heard of him to hear of him and accept vicarious baptism! It was amazing how he unfolded that doctrine! we know God is no respecter of persons so he cares for all his children no matter what! He gives them all an equal chance! I have truly seen the promise in Malachi 4 that says the hearts of the children will turn to the fathers and the fathers will turn to the children! When we do family history work the veil between us and the other side is thin! I testify of that! I wish y'all could have been with em and heard how beautifully this information was delivered and how powerful the spirit was! I have caught the spirit of Elijah and know how awesome family history work!
6. In zone conference we then went over how powerful church tours are! How great they are also! It was just amazing to see what a church tour can do if done correctly! we then all got to do it ourselves and we went around the building and taught pretend investigators! We got to teach the mission president's wife! Probably the nicest and funniest lady I have ever meet! I love her so much she is awesome! But we taught her about the church and it was amazing how powerful a tour of a local meeting house can be. One thing i also learned is how powerful a personal testimony is. As i told her how great relief society was and told her how they have blessed my family the spirit was so strong and it was amazing! Personal testimony and experiences are essential!
7. Some of the missionaries that were heading home shared a few thoughts that I loved. One said " more important than the number you baptize is the person you become through your desire to baptize" I thought that was so powerful. I have not seen as much fruit from my labors as I would have liked to see but I have seen myself grow so much! In just a little under a year i have changed a lot and i am so grateful for that experience! I love it so much I am so grateful for that! I am so grateful I still have a year left and i cant wait to see what will happen in the coming months! Adventure is out there!
8. On Saturday we had an interesting lesson.... it started great. An older gentleman that we had met we shared a few Scriptures in the bible that supported the restoration of the church and it was going so great, he agreed with all we had to say which was awesome. Then we introduced the Book of Mormon and suddenly all we had said was a lie... it was kind of a bummer, he just wanted to argue after that and it is sad to see how into it he was. He even said there could be other scriptures and then when it was introduced he shut down... it was a bummer but he was an interesting guy. Like everyone here, he knows the bible well. agency is frustrating....
9. President Albritton, the leader of the church in Monroeville, said something profound the other day that I thought was awesome. We were talking about the last days and how they are so very close, a person then said ya that is true but there has to be a great and last war before that happens. his reply was "the biggest war with the most casualties is the war that is currently being waged over the family". I thought that was so profound and so true if the adversary can destroy one family, he can destroy life for generations to come! He plays his cards smart but we all must play them smarter!
10. Concentration is something I am working on this week, month, year! I have realized how important it is to give the Lord our all! It is not a loss but it is a blessing giving yourself to the Lord. I know heavenly father needs me. and his work that is directed by the Savior needs exactly what I am prepared to give and to offer! Qhat a humbling task but I am looking forward to that with all my heart!
I hope you all want to do family history! I love you all and am grateful for you in my life!
Elder Taylor
No comments:
Post a Comment