Wow, it sounds like you've had a busy, busy week!! I hope and pray that you continue to have the energy and strength to do everything you need to. I don't know how you do so much at once--you are my hero! And you are absolutely right about needing to rely on the Lord every step of the way. I was reminded of that this week in a very powerful way. Elder Perkins of the Seventy was here for a few days, and on Saturday the Mission Leadership Council had the amazing opportunity to meet with him for a few hours. What a treat! Here are just a few things that I learned from him:
First, worrying is a form of pride--where we place more trust in ourselves and our own strength than in God. When we understand and remember who we are--nothing without God--we know that we can't do this by ourselves. We can use that to act differently, just like Elder Bowen shared with us. We act differently by relying on Him for everything--from finding to teaching to helping investigators keep appointments and commitments; from moving forward in faith to remaining patient to getting up on time in the morning. His enabling grace is not just the prize at the end of the finish line. He both helps us do all that we can, and fills in the gaps when we have done our best. We have to learn to lead by influence rather than command, for both our fellow missionaries that we lead and investigators that we teach. As we focus on bringing members to lessons and helping investigators attend church, conversion will take place and baptisms will happen. We can know how to accomplish our goals through revelation. Revelation comes when we are on the move, so to know how to make progress, we have to act, move forward, and work hard. We have to be humble, and seek for these accomplishments for the glory of God and benefit of others, not ourselves. The Church is true!!
Other than Elder Perkins, we had a pretty slow week. We worked SO hard, but every single one of our appointments with investigators and potentials fell through--and some multiple times. How frustrating! That's one of the biggest things we've come up against in this area--so many people don't keep appointments with us! It's gotten to the point where it's a little discouraging. But we're determined to learn from it and to find a way to success--with the Lord's help, of course. There are so many people that we've met here that are SO prepared--we just need to get Satan out of the way! Colleen, Korey, Ismaila, Susan--he gets them to be SO busy or sick, and to never have time to meet with us. He's so sneaky! It makes me wonder how many times that has happened in my own life without me realizing it. I have determined to never be too busy for the Lord in the future. If you could keep these people in your prayers, I would greatly appreciate it. I love them so much, and I want to teach them and help them receive gospel blessings so badly!!
We did, however, see some pretty amazing miracles this week, even in the midst of unkept appointments. :) We talked with a guy on the street named Zack, who was an atheist but the nicest person we talked to that whole day. He was the last person we talked to on that street, and I'm so grateful we did, because we had a very nice conversation, and he ended up accepting a Book of Mormon!
Another miracle was that we stopped by our friend Colleen at just the right time--again. We walked up just as she was getting out of her car. She still hasn't been able to meet with us yet, but she is SO prepared, and I know we will meet with her eventually.
Yet another miracle was last night at the Visitor's Center. I called a young man named Robert who had called earlier that week asking about the Book of Mormon. He asked about faith, and I gave him Alma 32 to read. When I called yesterday to follow up, he had read the whole chapter and loved it! He was raised without a belief in Christ, but he's been searching through the Book of Mormon and has so many questions. He doesn't even know why he's searching, but he told me that he's so grateful for the Book of Mormon because it feels right to read it. We talked more about faith, and how to try that experiment for himself to know that God is there. It was the most amazing lesson I have ever been a part of, and it was definitely not me doing the teaching--it was the Spirit. Robert prayed for the very first time at the end, and it was a huge step for him. I could see his faith growing already! He is so amazing and prepared, and I am so grateful that I was blessed by Heavenly Father to get to teach him. It reminds me of D&C 123:17--to do all we can, and then to stand still and see the Lord's arm revealed. It was nothing I did that made Robert call the Visitor's Center, or made the lesson go so well--it was amazing to stand and watch the Spirit work. It's something I always work for, but I never expected to stand in quite so much awe. What a miracle!!
We had lunch with Sister Wagner and helped her clean her house on Thursday, and it was so fun. She is an amazing cook and healthy eater--I want to cook like her someday!! I'm learning little by little how to eat healthier, and she gave me some really great ideas. I was so grateful also to be able to provide service for her and help her with things she couldn't do on her own. I'm just now realizing that we were able to be the Lord's hands many times this week, and I am so grateful for it!!
It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving is so soon--how did that happen? I've been studying a lot about humility and gratitude lately. I'm glad we have a holiday to remind us how grateful we should be throughout the whole year. :) I know that we are so blessed, both in times of need and times of plenty, and I hope to be able to remember the Lord in all things.
I'll end here and send some pictures. You are always in my prayers, and I so appreciate yours. I sure need them!!!! Love you!!
Love,
Sister Wygant
1. Sister Nelson and I!
2. Sister Nelson and I with one of the big nativities at the VC. The Nativity exhibit opens next Friday--SO excited!
more to come :)
No comments:
Post a Comment