Hey Everyone!
I hope this week was happy and successful for everyone! Elder Petty and I had the opportunity to go to the Temple on Tuesday and it was a fantastic experience. It's been a few months since I've been allowed to go, so it was a much needed trip. I love the focus, clarity, and strength that Temple attendance brings. What a blessing it is to live in a time when the House of the Lord is so accessible to any and all who simply prepare themselves.
The rest of the week wasn't bad, it just wasn't as productive as I would have liked. As the week progressed, every single one of our teaching appointments cancelled every day but Friday and Saturday. It was a pretty stressful and frustrating week, but it ended well. On Sunday we had 3 investigators at church and I found out that Gidget, an Investigator from Athens, was baptized on Saturday!
With the teaching appointments we had come through, there were a couple really neat ones. Friday night we met with Soani(Swan-E). Soani's husband is a member who has been less-active for some time now. They decided they needed to find a church to settle down in as a family and showed up one Sunday. Soani was raised in Mexico as a Catholic, but has some issues and concerns about the Catholic church. The first lesson with her went fantastically well. She is very excited about the Book of Mormon and has been reading every day. She has lots of great questions and is very willing to try everything we ask of her. She gave an amazing prayer at the end of the lesson and expressed her real intent to follow faithfully whatever Church the Lord tells her is true. Soani is very enthusiastic about everything she does and cannot wait to have us back in her home this week.
We were finally able to get in touch with Rosie, the investigator who disappeared after her baptismal interview. She is dealing with some issues emotionally and needs some time, but still has a great desire to be baptized and to follow the Savior. I'm hoping to help her prepare spiritually and emotionally so she can move forward with the interview process and set another date. She is such a wonderful lady.
After months of trying to track him down, Elder Petty and I (the second companionship to try) were able to locate and teach a man named Mateos. Mateos was born in Africa, but grew up in Brazil, so his first language is Portuguese. He learned Russian while going to University in Russia, and now is here in the United States learning English. He is an extremely interesting man and he's very prepared to hear the Gospel.
The lesson was a little shaky at first, and it took a while to get the basic concepts across because of the language barrier. Luckily, we were able to get a copy of the Book of Mormon in Portuguese before going into the lesson. When he read the introduction and Moroni 10:3-5 everything clicked. He became very excited and eager to read the Book. He expressed his gratitude over and over for us coming to share this with him and told us how badly he wanted us to come back and keep teaching him. His English class conflicts with church in about the worst way possible, but we are trying to figure out a way he can make it to church. I'm sure it will all work out. The Lord always provides a way.
Well I think that's about all I have to report at the moment, but I want you all to know how much I love and appreciate you! I feel your love and support as well as your prayers each and every day. I look forward to hearing more from each of you and I will continue to keep you all in my prayers daily. Until next time; be good, stay safe, and keep the faith!
Much love,
Elder Michael P. Lyman
Texas Dallas Mission
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