Rakkaat ystävät,
I think it is pretty accurate to say that this week was a
stretching week. When we promised the Lord that we were going to work on
courage, He took us very seriously.
So here's how Courage Week went down.
We had almost straight 0s in our numbers at the end of the
week. We only have two investigators at the moment, the daughters of a woman in
our ward, neither of whom are currently "progressing", and we
were unable to meet with that family at all last week. So no "member present" lessons. We didn't get any referrals or new investigators. We taught a
less-active woman, and two recent converts. But here's the thing. After it was
all said and done, Sisar Ross and I managed to teach 17 lessons this week. So despite
the fact that our numerical results were not so great, we still felt like we
had done everything we could and everything the Lord expected of us. We went
out of our way, really breaking down the walls of our comfort zone, to talk to
more people than we normally would, especially young adults, which have been our
area of biggest discomfort. And the Lord certainly threw that at us. Since we had promised we would do what He asked and because we had a focus
of talking with young people, it seemed like that's all He gave us. And it was scary. But with
His help, and a lot of prayers, we did it. And because we did it, we met some
really cool people and some possibly very prepared potentials.
We spent most of our time this week (since it obviously
wasn't spent in appointments) trying to contact potential investigators from
almost 10 years ago, and former investigators, and just contacting on the bus
or street to find people to teach. It certainly was not the most fun thing to
do, and definitely something I do not want to last for much longer. But we do
what we must, and the fruits are so close I can feel it.
One interesting thing this week happened at a
bus stop, the gathering place of the most interesting collection of people. We
were waiting for a bus out to an area to do contacting, when two intoxicated
men came into the shelter at the stop. They started talking at us and we ended up splitting into two conversations, Sisar Ross talking with one man and
me with the other. They both had asked about our name tags and asked questions
about God and their relationship with Jesus. The man I was talking to asked if
he could be forgiven, and I said yes, of course, Christ can forgive anyone. He
said thank you, thank you, and then he hugged me! It was possibly the most
awkward experience of my life, and it lasted way longer than would normally be
comfortable (made even less pleasant by the scent of Finnish beer, which for
some reason is incredibly potent). When he let go, I gave him a pamphlet about
the Restoration, which he proceeded to stick down his pants. He asked about
church services, and I gave him a card with our church address and phone
number. He became very interested in the fact I'd given him the phone number
and leaned in to touch my cheek and I was very very nervous that he was going
to kiss me. Thankfully his intoxicated mind couldn't stay focused on anything
for too long, and he suddenly had to go. Luckily for Sisar Ross, the man she
was talking to was a lot less gone. He was actually a narcotic who had been
buzzed earlier in the day, but was a bit more sane at the moment. He said he
really wanted to quit but just couldn't. That is so sad. Unfortunately, he had
to go before we thought to tell him about the Church's addiction recovery program.
It is so interesting to to me how concerned drunk people seem to be about
religious things. It's like they know that they are pushing themselves away
from Heavenly Father and their spirit is protesting against the natural man. I
wish there was more we could have done for them.
Well, It was a rough one, but a good one. We had such a good
week of learning and loving and growing, and I know that's what Heavenly Father
wanted for us. I'm at peace with that. As the people of Alma, I can cheerfully
bear my afflictions and hard times with patience because I know that the Lord
is on my side and will not leave me alone. (see Mosiah 24:12-16, here).
Well my lovely friends, I hope you all have a great week.
Heavenly Father hears you prayers, and He will answer then in the way that will
be the greatest blessing to you, even if it's not what you are expecting and
wanting.
Menkää eteenpäin, tule mitä tule (Go ahead, come what will).
Stay shiny!
Rakkaudella,
Sisar Hillebrant
 |
| Finland in the fall. Time for cold weather attire. |
No comments:
Post a Comment