Tuesday we met with Jeff again and talked with him about prophets. We read with him from 2 Nephi about the need for the BOM and the fact that it would come forth to support the Bible. In the middle of us talking, he interrupted and said that everything just makes so much sense! He is so awesome! We gave him the BOM cds so that he can listen to them. S. Mat then extended the baptism commitment, and he said yes! We then started to invite him to church, but he backed us up and said that when he knew, he would "act expediently" Whoa! Talk about super awesome! We rejoiced in that and then invited him to church, and he said he knew that he was going to need to come to church, and he wants to. Man, he just gets better and better. He was going to listen to conference and then we were going to meet with him Sunday morning, but we went over there, and he opened the door with a mask on. He and his family have H1N1. Ugh. He said he wasn't able to get much done in the ways of listening to the BOM or watching conference. Oh I hope he gets better soon so we can continue to teach him.
We met with the Phersons Tuesday. Most of the time was spent trying to butt in between them arguing with each other. They are both strong willed and get defensive and argumentative. Not a good combination, especially when trying to teach the gospel. They explain things differently, and because they do so, they misunderstand each other and think they have different views when in actuality, they agree. As I was sitting there listening to them, I was thinking it'd be nice to be able to teach them individually. Apparently God thought so too - a few minutes later, John suggested we come over when she's not home. Then Sister Pherson agreed that that was a good idea. So we went back Wednesday to talk with John. He's got a good heart. He wants to save his marriage (because right now religion is driving a wedge between them - or better yet, they are driving the wedge of religion between themselves). He wants to understand his wife's beliefs so they can cooperate. He isn't looking to convert - he says he never wants to be a Mormon because they're too solemn and never smile. Despite this desire to understand, he's still kind of close minded. And he has a lot of questions that he wants answered before he has the foundational understanding to support those answers. We asked him to be patient with us and he said he would, but there is that air of impatience. He asked something about the BOM and we decided to go into that, and then he cut us off and said that was impossible and he couldn't believe that unless there was proof, so we should talk about something else. Hmm. If he could listen long enough to hear our message, without incorrect preconceived notions, he'd be a great member. He's such a loving guy. He just doesn't understand. A big thing he doesn't understand is how we worship. We know that we can worship God and Jesus without literally shouting praises to Them. We worship them as we learn of them and express gratitude for Their works. He sees all that we do/say as praising the church and Joseph Smith. We've tried to explain it to him, but he doesn't want to change his mind. It'll sure take some time with him. We met with Sister Pherson on Friday. She's got such a strong testimony. She's so sweet. The culture and language difference makes it hard for her to talk about religion with John. She easily gets defensive and then won't talk about it because it ends in an argument. Maybe we should teach them both patience. :) They're both really great people, and I really admire John for wanting to understand her and her beliefs. I know this gospel can help them - if they let it!
Wednesday we met with Angie. We had planned to have a DTR about coming to church. We thought there was an underlying concern that was keeping her from church because she is so willing to do anything else we ask. She told us that Emma was sick and didn't want to go. Mikela told her, "suck it up Emma, I want to go to church!" Oh we had a good laugh at that one! It seemed as if something was on Angie's mind though, so we waited and listened. She told us of some struggles she's having with her husband's actions and it makes it hard for her to remember to read the BOM. As we listened more, she shared that she didn't feel worthy because of her husband's actions (she felt bad putting her family in that situation). We were able to comfort her and let her know that God determines who is worthy, and the baptism interview questions that we went over last week prove to her that God knows she's worthy. That really soothed her. We then talked about the gift of the Holy Ghost and she said "well that changes everything!" Man, it was just what Angie needed. It was such a powerful lesson, so focused on what she needed. It was amazing that the things we had planned - church and the Holy Ghost - were what she needed. I was prompted to tell her that Heavenly Father wanted her to pray about being baptized on April 30th and Angie giggled. She said she just got so excited at that thought, and took that as her answer, though she said she would still pray about it. Yay! Oh, I love Angie so much! It was so hard to call her this morning and tell her that I'm leaving. She's definitely had a huge impact on my life, as well as her girls! We taught the girls Saturday morning before conference about following the prophet and obedience. We reviewed what a prophet is and does and did a little activity to show how important a prophet is. We then told them that Moses is dead, Noah is dead, Joseph Smith is dead, so what do we do? They got super sad, and then they remembered they could read their words in the scriptures. But they were still sad. We told them that we have a prophet alive today, and they got so excited! It was wonderful! We explained to them more about conference and we gave them conference bingo cards to use as they listened. They were so excited for conference! They asked when it was and Angie told them it was later in the day and they said they couldn't wait that long! Oh, I just love them! They are so adorable.
We met with Michael Wednesday and taught him about following the prophet and obedience. He had read up to 1 Nephi 8 so we tied that in with following the prophet. He liked the chapter, but he was kind of stoic about the lesson. I'm again not seeing much drive from him. :( He hasn't been to church in the last few weeks.
We had dinner with the Palads Wednesday night. They are awesome! They're from the Philippines, they just moved here from Logansport, and he was just baptized in August. They are so fun! Brother Palad made the first egg rolls that I've liked! The dinner conversation was so great. Oh I just love them. Their love for the gospel is so strong. And they love missionaries. What more could you want? :)
We met with Desiree that night. She moved out of the bad situation of living with her negative boyfriend. Yay! We taught her about the cleansing power of the Atonement and the need for faith in Christ. It was a really great lesson. Despite being stressed and busy, she still finds time to read some in the BOM. And she loves our visits. She gets a lot of strength out of them. Oh I just wish her boss would give her Sundays off so she could come to church!
We finally saw Stephanie again and we taught her about the Apostasy using the BOM. She had read the assignment of 1 Nephi 1-3 and she even applied it to her life, it was great! She's really sincere, and I know the gospel would totally be a benefit in her life. She'll get there, as long as she keeps reading and making time to meet with us.
We taught Deven Thursday night about the Atonement and the spirit world. His mom was there and she shared her belief of what happened after we die, and it was amazingly pretty accurate. There were some differences, but the main concept and idea was there. She shared her belief kind of like "this is what I believe and I know it's right" assuming that our belief was different. I think she was kind of surprised to hear that our doctrine is very similar. Deven's still awesome, to the point that he won a stare down with his less active dad and got him to say the closing prayer. Yay!
We met with Joe and Kristie Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, and we'll see them again tonight. They're awesome! He has so much knowledge. The spiritual conversion is coming. In his ramblings, he told us he knew Joseph Smith was a prophet. Kristie is just learning, but she likes what she sees and says it makes sense. Joe said he'd taken Moroni's challenge the first time he read the BOM and then that night he had a dream. He wasn't sure if it was an answer or not. He shared it with us, and when we assured him that we didn't think he was nuts, and it could very well be an answer, he took that as his answer. As we were getting ready to leave Thursday, we invited them to pray about being baptized. Joe said he already had an answer - yes. Great! So then we invited them to pray about a date. Again, he said he already knew when - May 1st! Kristie agreed as well! Wow! These people that we just barely met last week set their own baptism date! AWESOME!! They came to the first session of Saturday conference. We didn't get to talk to them too much, but their body language kind of worried us that maybe they didn't like it or something went wrong. During the session, Joe just looked kind of bored. Sister Lalonde told us she told him he needed to put his academics aside and listen for the Spirit. We thought maybe that may have offended him in some way. We met with them that night, and Joe said he loved it! He then shared that during the conference, he felt that the Spirit was there, and he didn't really feel that in other churches. He said it was the first time he went to a church and felt like he gained something rather than lost something. He then told us that he had a conversation with the Spirit. The Holy Ghost asked if he was happy, and if he had any doubts. Joe responded that he was happy and he didn't have doubts. He took that as an answer! They came to both sessions on Sunday. Joe said his favorite part was when the prophet spoke. Kristie said she felt peace when he spoke, and that's something she's been looking for for 40 years. They both said they feel at home at our church. Joe said he can't wait for this month to be over so that they can be baptized. We talked to them about obedience and following the prophet and how this baptism is just the beginning. He said that's what they've been looking for - a baptism that acts as a springboard, not the end result. Wow. They are so awesome!
We met with Mike Friday. We discussed 1 Nephi 8 - or tried to. He told us he'd read, but he really didn't. I will forever remember that as we talked about the importance of the rod of iron in bringing us to God, Mike interjected and asked how big the rod was. Really?! Goodness. He just enjoys our company, he is not looking to know if this is true. He said he feels God gave him his answer, and that it was false. I testified that this Church is true, and the only way to know is to read the BOM and to pray about it. I then shared that God wouldn't give 2 people different answers. Mike said he agreed, and that's why he feels that we're following the devil, not God. Well then. We dropped him.
Well, I still need to write about Jamie and Judy, but I am out of time because we're going to the Children's Museum today. I'll write about them next week.
Love you all!
sister humpherys
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