Heyyooooo,
How is everyone, I am always hoping great of course! Well this
week kind of went by fast, but they all seem to do that... Sister Petersen and
I had a really amazing miracle this week. Well where to start. We had a lot of
people cancel on us this week, which is always a bummer, but as a missionary
that's just kind of the story of my life. So we ended up doing a whole lot of
tracting and visiting our less active members. Which was nice I love visiting
less actives. I don't know if I told you about the less active members that
just moved into our ward, the Conkright family. Well anyways we have built a
really good relationship with them and we have gotten them to come with us
twice! It’s been so great and they are so awesome and really want to get involved
in the church again. On Wednesday the 2 kids Nicky and Daniel preformed in the
talent show the youth were having and they did a great job! They just seem so
much happier now they there are getting more involved in church and I am so
glad! So my word and Daniel the punk and I only say that because I love the
kid, got a fake snake, and we went over for dinner and they really live out in
the middle of the woods and there are a ton of creatures and after dinner it
was dark and he had run outside and put the snake on top of the car right on
the passenger side, so when I went to open the door it was right in my face and
all I could do was scream and then I hear Daniel in the bushes laughing his
head off I grabbed the snake and threw it at him. I still have to think of a
way to get him back before I go! But they are a really great family and I am
really excited to have gotten to know them for the time that I did.
So I don't know if you remember me talking about a woman that I
met when I first got to Lecanto named Angela, but if you don't I will give you
a recap. Angie is in her 30's and has MD and she also had a 13-year-old
daughter. Angie has been taught by the missionaries for about a year, and she
had a baptismal date at one point, but was feeling like she was being pressured
into it so she backed out and then the missionaries stopped visiting her. Well
when I got here she was an old former investigator and Sister Murphy and I
decided to go and visit her and at the time she still wasn't ready to be baptized
or anything and she had started smoking again and such. Well ever since that
time we have been stopping by and trying to visit her and it's been pretty
good, then we didn't see Angie basically all summer because she was having some
major health issues and also had to have her gallbladder removed and the hospital
that she was at even though it's up the road in Ocala, isn't in our mission. So
we weren't able to see her. Well this last week she Facebook messaged us and
asked us if we could come over. So we went and visited her and she said
"Sister's I need to have you help me make a plan, I have already stopped
smoking and I am on a patch program that weans you off nicotine over 7 weeks. I
want to be baptized on November 8th when my program is done." Sister Petersen’s
and my jaw dropped and she said as well " I have already been reading the
scriptures ever day and I also like watching those cartoon scriptures you
Mormons make." I was really shocked, so I pulled out my little notebook
and made a game plan with Angie on how she is going to accomplish this and the
things that she would need to do. It really was a miracle. She also came to
church yesterday and stayed all 3 hours, which she normally didn't do in the
past. She is really determined to make it to baptism, and we are excited to
help her. I am really glad though that I was at least able to be here to hear
her decision to be baptized. When I first got here she had a bit of negative
feelings about some of the old missionaries that she had and some things about
church. But for some reason Angie and I really hit it off when we met and I was
able to help her feel better about things and help her to know that she can
work at her own pace and that she doesn't have to feel pressured about being
baptized. We became really good friends and I think that is why she has felt
comfortable to tell me things about her life and how she feels about joining a
church. I feel like it has also enabled me to be able to be "lovingly
bold" with her, because she knows I'm not trying to be pushy, but because
I really care about her, which I am glad. I think that is one thing that I love
about being a missionary, people just trust you. They don't even have to know
you for more than an hour and they trust you with their whole life. People all
the time that I don't even know open up to me about their entire lives and know
that I will listen. And I also know that it is not because of me, but because I
have the Savior's name on my chest and that is a name that people trust. I hope
that I will be able to still help people in the same way when I get home, but I
fear that it just isn't the same when you are not a missionary. As many of you
know I have been struggling these past couple of transfers with my companion. I
have been at the brink of frustration more than I feel is my fair share, but I
have tried hard to control my own selfish feelings and just work it out. It
still is harder than anything I ever want to do again, but I feel that the Lord
is helping me to see that only I can let myself get upset or mad or angry. I
honestly can say that I am grateful because it helps me to realize exactly what
I can handle and what I cannot. And especially what I am going to expect out of
someone when I get married someday. I am in a situation where I cannot just run
away, but I have to fix it and try and make it better. I feel that is to some
extent what Heavenly Father requires of those that are married. That is the
most important thing we do in this life, we are supposed to take care of it,
and when it's broken running away shouldn't be the first thought, it should be
to fix it. Well that's all I can wisdom up for the week. Today we are going
over to Homosassa to look at Manatees. That should be fun. Talk to you all
soon, love you
Sister
Jamison
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