I found out this past weekend that my friend Cameron’s dad passed away. This was a huge shock! I definitely did not expect that news. I love Cameron so much! He is serving his mission right now in South Africa, and is such a great missionary and an amazing friend! I know that Heavenly Father is comforting him and his family as they go through this hard time, and that The Plan of Salvation helps us know that we will see loved ones again. I can testify that Cameron and the Keetch family will see their father again! Please keep him and his family in your prayers!
This last week in Wellington was great! We saw a lot of success, and we were able to teach a lot of people! As it says in the title of my email, Elder Burke and I are celebrities here in Wellington from this past week! We Tracted a lot, and on Sunday in Ward Council a member of our ward told us that people were talking about us on the towns Facebook page. The lady posted something that said, “Latter Day Saint missionaries knocking on my door at 7:15 p.m., isn’t that suspicious?” It was the talk of the town apparently, and the ward loved it! Here in Wellington, people go to bed and the town dies at 7, so it has been difficult to do missionary work from 7-9 since we’ve gotten here. One day we decided to tract, and apparently people thought we were suspicious! Haha, the ward tried to find the comment on the Facebook page, but it had been deleted by the admin, so I don’t have a picture to prove it..... but it was actually kind of nice of that lady to post that. It helped build some more ward trust in us, showing them that we are here to do the work!
We were able to teach Bird, one of our Investigators, last Tuesday night. Unexpectedly her brother, JJ, joined us for the lesson. We were able to teach them both about The Restoration, and it went pretty well! JJ talked a lot, and kinda overpowered Bird throughout the lesson so she didn’t get too involved while we taught, but the Spirit was present and we were able to testify of the truthfulness of our message! They both committed to read from The Book Of Mormon and pray to know if it is true, so we have another lesson with them tonight. We are hoping they were able to read and pray, it should be awesome! Can’t wait to teach them tonight!
Our lesson with Bob went really well! It had to get pushed back due to some stuff that came up. He read and we went over a lot of his questions about The Book Of Mormon reading. He has deep, very specific questions, so answering them all took of the whole time we were able to meet with him. We weren’t able to teach the lesson we had prepared about Baptism and Confirmation, but honestly we think that was supposed to happen. Bob also came to church this past week, and after Gospel Principles class, he asked the teacher about Priesthood Authority. (That is his only hang up about being baptized, so we are going to talk with him tomorrow when we teach him about it.) He stood out in the hall for the rest of third hour and talked with the teacher and another member about Priesthood Authority, so we are hoping they helped him understand it more! Now when we go over it this week we will see how that conversation went with those members. One of the reasons he has trouble with this topic is because he was raised and baptized in the R-LDS church, so he thinks they have authority as well as us...... we are going to address this tomorrow. He is so close, and is honestly a pretty much a “dry Mormon” so to speak. We pray we can help him understand it more through teaching by the power of the Holy Ghost!
We had a lesson with Mike yesterday that went pretty well too! He said he didn’t have time to read from The Book Of Mormon because of his new dog that is taking up all of his time, but we were able to teach him about the importance of reading and praying about The Book Of Mormon to gain a testimony. He told us he has a desire to learn more, and he knows The Book Of Mormon is true, but he wants to attend a baptismal service and church before he commits to a baptismal date. Sounds easy enough right? But the hang up is his incredibly fuzzy little dog that he just got...... who knew a dog would halt someone’s progress. He said he can’t come to church for three hours because the new dog can’t be left alone. We are praying that he can find a way to be able to leave his dog for three hours to let him attend church, and we know that the Lord will provide a way! We know he will get baptized, but it may take some time. He is an amazing guy!
We had Zone Conference this past week, and the main focus was on Repentance. It was a really uplifting and powerful meeting! I love it when President McMurray focuses on “Daily Repentance.” I know that repenting daily is essential to having the spirit with us! As we are grateful for Jesus Christ’s sacrifice, and if we utilize his everlasting Atonement as much as we can daily, we will be blessed for it! I am trying to do this, but it is actually really hard. Sometimes I forget, and other things get in the way, but when I do it is amazing! I am so grateful for Jesus Christ and His Atoning sacrifice for each and every one of us! Through him we can live with our Heavenly Father once more, and see the blessings that come, and the immense joy that we can feel as we repent! What a miracle and a blessing that Heavenly Father has provided us with this Great and Eternal Gift!
Like I said before, Elder Burke and I had a great time Tracting a lot this past week! We found a bunch of potential investigators to teach, and have return appointments with them this upcoming week! We did have an experience that sheds some light on how the people of Wellington go to sleep at 7:00. We were Tracting, and as we knocked in a door, a man yelled at us through it and told us to go away. We thanked him, and when we were two houses away he came out of his house and yelled at us some more. He told us that nobody wants to hear our message about Jesus Christ, and that we should just go home. We politely assured him that people do want to hear our message, and that God loves him. He just stormed back into his house after our exchange, but all I could do was smile. Every day we hear people reject our message. Every day people are rude or mean to us. However, every day we find someone who wants to listen, this is what makes it all worth it. Like in D&C 18:10 it states, “Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;” This is so true! When we share the Gospel, some may reject us, but when people listen and accept that message it is amazing to feel the love of God for that specific child of God! This is why I love Tracting! It is hard work to find “the one!”
I was studying in 1 Nephi 13, and this is now one of my favorite chapters in The Book Of Mormon! This chapter is when Nephi is seeing a vision of our day. In verses 34-41 it talks about The Restoration. I would encourage you all to read this! I know that The Book Of Mormon is the word of God, that it restored plain and simple truths that the Bible had lost, and that it helps us come closer to Jesus Christ! What a miracle and a blessing it is to have The Book Of Mormon, to read, ponder, and study from each and every day! I hope that we all utilize and make The Book Of Mormon, and reading it daily, a big priority in our lives. It will bless you, and help you feel immense joy! I hope that you guys have a great week, thanks for being such an amazing family! Thanks for all the support! I’m grateful for you guys, and pray for you daily! :)
Love,
Elder Bailey
Pics:
1. Friendly doors in Wellington!
2-3. Zone Conference this past week!
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