2.28.11
Hey Y'all!
I hope everyone is doing well today! My week has been a great one. It is so much fun to read Ben's e-mails every week and hear about all the differences and similarities in our missionary experiences. I'm really proud of him and he is constantly in my prayers. What a blessing it is to be in the mission field at the same time as my little(big) brother!
I hope everyone is doing well today! My week has been a great one. It is so much fun to read Ben's e-mails every week and hear about all the differences and similarities in our missionary experiences. I'm really proud of him and he is constantly in my prayers. What a blessing it is to be in the mission field at the same time as my little(big) brother!
I find myself working harder and harder when I thought I was already working as hard as I could! I guess doing the Lord's errand tends to work out that way. There's only 2 more weeks in the transfer including this week, and I'm trying to figure out where the time keeps going so quickly. I've been out 7 months today and it hasn't ceased to blow my mind yet how quickly time moves.
Somehow Elder Low and I have avoided going on any exchanges this transfer. I think it's because none of our leaders want to come bike in our area, but who's to say... Either way, the lack of interruptions have allowed us to get into a nice groove and see a lot of success. Elder Low lost the use of his bike for a day or two this week because the valve on his back tube broke. Even while we were reduced to walking, we still were guided and had the opportunity to find and talk with a lot of really neat people. We've been able to see quite blatantly how the Lord puts us exactly where we need to be to find those of His children whom He has prepared to receive the Restored Gospel. One such experience sticks out in my mind from this week.
On Saturday, Elder Low and I were kept a little later than expected in a couple of our appointments, and found ourselves with less time to tract than we had anticipated. We didn't have time to get out to the place we had originally planned to tract, so we said a prayer and went by the spirit. We decided on a neighborhood not far from where we had started off and began looking for people to talk to. The first gentleman we contacted was cleaning up his yard and was quite impressed by and curious about missionaries. We explained at length how the calling process works and what we do as missionaries. He wasn't interested in hearing about the Gospel but we gave him a card with our number and asked that he give us a call when he was ready to bag up the large piles of leaves he had gathered that evening. He expressed that his back wasn't what it used to be and that he would surely be giving us a call.
After our conversation with the man in his yard, we continued on down the street. We encountered some hostility, and didn't have much success from then on. We were beginning to wonder why we were in this neighborhood at all as we knocked on the last door on the street. No one answered, so we started back to where our bikes were locked up at the other end of the block. Just as we were about to leave the neighborhood, a girl came running out of her house calling for us to wait. We walked over to talk to her and immediately she asked, "do you have an extra copy of the Book of Mormon I can have?". A bit surprised but without hesitation I said, "of course!". I asked her what her name was and how she had heard of the Church.She told us that her name is JC and said that she is home schooled so she doesn't have any friends or acquaintances that are LDS. She explained that she had heard her dad talking about the Mormons but thought it best not to repeat the words he'd used in describing the LDS faith. JC told us how she had seen commercials on TV and had spent a lot of time on LDS.org and the new Mormon.org websites. "I believe everything your church teaches", she said. I asked if her parents would be opposed to us teaching her and she said they would. "I'm 15, almost 16", she said, "but I figure when I turn 18 I can just convert then ". "Well", I said, "since it doesn't sound like we'll be allowed to come back, why don't I give you some more material to read up on and pray about, ok?" She said that would be great and I gave her one of each of the 6 lesson pamphlets. We gave her our number, told her to call us after she'd asked her parents to make sure what they'd say, and then had a prayer with her. It was apparent why we were in that neighborhood. A 15 year old home schooled girl had been prepared without any contact with anyone from the Church. I don't doubt that she will in fact be baptized when she's 18, or perhaps sooner. Maybe the Lord can change her parents' hearts.
Somehow Elder Low and I have avoided going on any exchanges this transfer. I think it's because none of our leaders want to come bike in our area, but who's to say... Either way, the lack of interruptions have allowed us to get into a nice groove and see a lot of success. Elder Low lost the use of his bike for a day or two this week because the valve on his back tube broke. Even while we were reduced to walking, we still were guided and had the opportunity to find and talk with a lot of really neat people. We've been able to see quite blatantly how the Lord puts us exactly where we need to be to find those of His children whom He has prepared to receive the Restored Gospel. One such experience sticks out in my mind from this week.
On Saturday, Elder Low and I were kept a little later than expected in a couple of our appointments, and found ourselves with less time to tract than we had anticipated. We didn't have time to get out to the place we had originally planned to tract, so we said a prayer and went by the spirit. We decided on a neighborhood not far from where we had started off and began looking for people to talk to. The first gentleman we contacted was cleaning up his yard and was quite impressed by and curious about missionaries. We explained at length how the calling process works and what we do as missionaries. He wasn't interested in hearing about the Gospel but we gave him a card with our number and asked that he give us a call when he was ready to bag up the large piles of leaves he had gathered that evening. He expressed that his back wasn't what it used to be and that he would surely be giving us a call.
After our conversation with the man in his yard, we continued on down the street. We encountered some hostility, and didn't have much success from then on. We were beginning to wonder why we were in this neighborhood at all as we knocked on the last door on the street. No one answered, so we started back to where our bikes were locked up at the other end of the block. Just as we were about to leave the neighborhood, a girl came running out of her house calling for us to wait. We walked over to talk to her and immediately she asked, "do you have an extra copy of the Book of Mormon I can have?". A bit surprised but without hesitation I said, "of course!". I asked her what her name was and how she had heard of the Church.She told us that her name is JC and said that she is home schooled so she doesn't have any friends or acquaintances that are LDS. She explained that she had heard her dad talking about the Mormons but thought it best not to repeat the words he'd used in describing the LDS faith. JC told us how she had seen commercials on TV and had spent a lot of time on LDS.org and the new Mormon.org websites. "I believe everything your church teaches", she said. I asked if her parents would be opposed to us teaching her and she said they would. "I'm 15, almost 16", she said, "but I figure when I turn 18 I can just convert then ". "Well", I said, "since it doesn't sound like we'll be allowed to come back, why don't I give you some more material to read up on and pray about, ok?" She said that would be great and I gave her one of each of the 6 lesson pamphlets. We gave her our number, told her to call us after she'd asked her parents to make sure what they'd say, and then had a prayer with her. It was apparent why we were in that neighborhood. A 15 year old home schooled girl had been prepared without any contact with anyone from the Church. I don't doubt that she will in fact be baptized when she's 18, or perhaps sooner. Maybe the Lord can change her parents' hearts.
Well, after 3 weeks of not seeing any trace of Nate and Rosa, we saw Nate at church and he invited us to come over and teach them another lesson. For the lesson we reviewed the Plan of Salvation and answered Rosa's questions about it. Elder Low re-extended a baptismal invitation and she accepted. We set a date with her for March 12th. Rosa showed a lot more interest in anything and asked us what she needed to know in order to be baptized. We then went through the interview questions with her and established that she has a testimony of the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. We explained that we'd be teaching her more about the Word of Wisdom and the other commandments when we came back. I'm really excited for their family. If all goes well, this time next year they will be preparing to enter the Temple together.
Aaron's baptism is coming up quick. It will take place on Saturday. We were over at his house yesterday, but he was having a little bit of a hard time. His cat died, and somehow it became the duty of his missionaries to help him bury it. I'm betting I won't have that experience again on my mission. I thought it was cool that he wanted us to help him out though. He's a really awesome kid.
Well, I think my letter this week is at least a little bit longer than my usual weekly offering. I feel bad sometimes about how short my e-mails home can get. Hopefully I'll be able to keep up the standard and return with more fun and interesting things to report.
I love you all very much and I continue to pray for your safety and success as you exercise your agency righteously. I can't wait to hear more from you all soon. Until next time; be good, stay safe, and keep the faith!
Love,
Elder Michael P. Lyman
Texas Dallas Mission
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