President and Sister Bullock are in my ward! Or, should I say I'm in their ward? No pressure to be perfect or anything! Let's just say my shirt was starched stiff on Sunday. The Manchester South Ward is so great. Their enthusiasm for missionary work is so strong! The members seem to be constantly giving out pass-along cards and sharing the gospel with their friends. Sister Wilde has been feeling for a few months that the ward members have referrals who are ready. Consequently, we have been brainstorming ways we can increase the members' trust in us and begin teaching their friends. I am really excited! I feel like we are on the verge of something great and it will wonderful to watch it unfold.
We have found a couple of new investigators from our own efforts since I got here (Georgia from Jamaica and Dave from England) and we are teaching one that the sisters already had: Cathy. Cathy is from England as well. She is in her late forties and has a twelve-year-old daughter. Like everyone in the world today, she's had a hard family life but she loves the peace that the gospel is bringing to her.
Every month, the Bullocks hold a fireside in the mission home for missionaries and their investigators. I've always been too far away to come, but yesterday Cathy wanted to go! The mission home fireside was so good for her. I think she was able to finally identify the Spirit last night and determine that it is something she wants in her own home. We want to help her flush the negativity from her life and really focus on the hope that comes from the Gospel. We have high hopes that she will accept a baptismal date soon! The mission home fireside was also fun for me to see some of my Elders and Sisters! There were about twelve companionships there and amazingly I knew most of them. The Spirit was so strong and it was just lovely hearing about the experiences they've had since I served with/around them. There truly is power in gathering! Sister Bullock made a bunch of homemade treats which just put the cherry on top of an already perfect evening.
Sister Wilde is teaching me so much. Specifically this week I have learned from her about following the Spirit. She is reverent and soft spoken all of the time and the silence really gives us the chance to hear the voice of the Spirit as it whispers. She is from Alberta, Canada and grew up on a farm. She plays piano and used to play violin so we share some music in common : ) She wants to be an Elementary School teacher when she gets home. I think she has a year left of her degree.
Last night at the fireside I was speaking to one of my previous Zone Leader's investigators, Simon, and he explain that it was listening to President Monson that gave him a testimony. He felt the Spirit so strongly when President Monson said, "If the Lord calls me, I'll always run an errand for him." That really touched me too! basically all I'm doing everyday is running errands for Heavenly Father! What fun : ) It tied in nicely to this quote I found recently from Joseph Fielding McConkie,
"We can hardly profess to be on the Lord's errand, to be his messengers, if we let the Adversary dictate our agenda. If someone can find a doctrine that does not make the minions of Hell protest, then he has found a doctrine that does not matter. A doctrine that Satan does not seek to distort and attack is hardly worth preaching. Those that he rants the most about are obviously the ones which he fears the most and thus the ones we ought to be preaching the most."
It's so true! People get so upset sometimes when we share true doctrine, but the wicked take the truth to be hard.
Here's to running errands for the Lord! The church is true,
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