October 31, 2011

10-31-11

Hey everyone,

                Happy Halloween! I hope everyone has had and continues to have a happy and safe holiday! Things here in Athens continue to move right along. We haven’t had the best week, but all is well and the Church is still true.

                We had a few neat experiences this week that I’d like to share. I don’t know what will come of these, but they seemed pretty cool at the moment. They both have to do with being either in the right place at the right time or simply being prepared to be used by the Lord wherever we happen to be at the time.

     The first experience occurred while we were getting some things laminated at Office Depot. A man standing in line (who was obviously very stressed) turned to us, looked at our nametags, and a flash of excitement came across his face. “Missionaries!” He exclaimed, “Do you speak Spanish?”  We replied in the affirmative and he then asked us if we could translate something for him. The man is an immigration attorney and he had a letter from his client’s mother he needed translated. We said we could do it in exchange for a first lesson. He gladly agreed.

     The next experience happened while Elder Guerrero and I were in the church preparing a video segment for an upcoming activity. We were the only ones in the building and the phone in the hall rang. When I answered, the lady on the other end introduced herself and explained that she needed help with the first month’s rent in her new apartment. She and her kids had just gotten back on their feet and are moving out of a shelter into their own place.  I talked to her for a few minutes and shared a little about the message we share and asked if she’d be interested in learning more. She said that she would, and that she has been looking for a church to help strengthen her little family. She lives in a smaller community near the edge of our area, where we rarely get to work. We scheduled a time to teach her family and she should be at church this week. After our conversation I put her in touch with a member of the bishopric to see what could be done to assist her in her situation. Had we not been in the building at that moment to answer her phone call, she probably would have moved on to the next church in the phone book and we may never have had the opportunity to meet her, let alone teach her.

                I know that if we are doing what is asked of us and relying on the spirit, that the Lord can use us wherever we are, despite our shortcomings. I love this work and I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to be a full-time servant of the Savior Jesus Christ. I love you all very much and I look forward to hearing from you again next week! Don’t let the Halloween bugs bite, y’all! Until next time; be good, stay safe, and keep the faith!

Love,

Elder Michael P. Lyman

   Texas Dallas Mission

 

Dad,

Fort Worth has its own mission. Our mission goes as far east as Grand Prairie and Irving. Arlington is in the Fort Worth Misison.