Sounds like the trio had a great week! So much going on in Germany and here in the States! Life is never boring! It was good to talk to some of you at Talya's wedding reception. Glad to know you are reading the blog. Tonya loves to hear from all of you. You can send her emails and she can write back in snail mail. So here is her letter for the week!
Liebe Familie und Freunde,
It has been an extraordinary week here in Bielefeld!!! The Lord is watching over us and leading His children to the truth! I'm not sure where to start! So I'll just ramble as things come to my mind.
We had an eating appointment this week with a wonderful member who has an AMAZING conversion story! She told us about it and I wanted to write a little bit about what she said. She found the church at the age of 17 through a family that she babysat for. She learned the lessons with this family and decided that she would like to be baptized. She had to get her fathers permission to be baptized and he didn't approve. He told her that she was Evangelish (no idea how to spell that right in English) and she couldn't be a member of two churches. So the next day, she went into the Evangelish church and had herself removed from the records of the church. The next day she told her dad that she would like to be baptized and he again said that she couldn't be a member of two churches, she said that was fine because she was no longer a member of the Evangelish church. WOW! Of course he wasn't very happy about that and still didn't get permission. But then one day she was praying and new that she was going to get a signature from her dad that day. So she marched into his room and said dad, I want to get baptized, I need you to sign this. Reluctantly he signed the papers. She hid the papers fearing that her father would change his mind. That day the Pastor in the Evangelish church came to her father and asked about her. He then proceeded to tell her father every dirty thing he could think of about the church. As this member went later to get the papers, she realized she had hid them so well that she couldn't find them either (and still hasn't to this day). So she had to go to her father again and ask for another signature. He told her about the Pastor and refused again to sign the papers. She explained that what the Pastor said wasn't correct and that if he had a problem he could come talk to her, but she still wanted a signature. So reluctantly he signed the papers again. She was then baptized and began immediately to serve in the church. She explained that she had 10 different callings at one time in her small branch including Relief Society President and teacher of almost every single class. As she taught the young people in the area began to hear about the wonderful lessons that they had in church and they began to come to church. In a short time the ward had almost doubled in active members! She explained that every day she would go to work and then go to the church, she didn't have time for anything else. She also explained that after 14 years of fighting with her father he and her mother were baptized along with one of her brothers I believe. And since then four of her closest friends have been baptized and she continues to "work with" many more friends and family members! She is such an inspiration to me! We told her that she has to write her story because it was so brilliant! I hope she will! I want to be a member missionary like her my whole life!
Other things this week, we had a WONDERFUL baptism!!!!! The spirit was so so strong and many members of her family came to support her! She was so happy and her mother didn't know what to do with herself. She said it felt like she was getting baptized again only she was more nervous this time! She was set apart yesterday in church and is now one of the newest members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Yesterday she explained to us, "I know which church is the true church! Its the one that we go to!" It is so wonderful to see her learn the principles of the gospel and to apply them to her life even though she is so young. I know the whole family will come to the gospel and become an eternal family!
We have found some WONDERFUL people this week!!! We have had amazing conversations with people on the streets and I am growing to love the German people and all those that live here more and more every day! I was able to help a lady find some comfort the other day to know a little bit why Heavenly Father (whom she doesn't believe in) took her husband away six years ago. I explained how I feel like we all have responsibilities in this life, when we have acheived what the Lord has planned for us here, we move onto the next life to take care of our responsibilities there. She said that she has already acheived what she was meant to do and I told her that maybe there were still people who needed to learn things from her. She smiled at the thought and I could tell she felt the Holy Ghost witness to her of the truth. Although she didn't make out an appointment with us, I know she will think about it more and hopefully open the door to her accepting the Gospel.
We saw a wonderful missionary perfect miracle!!! Yesterday after church we were mingling with the members when one member came up to us and asked us if we had a minute. We said of course. Sister Hamblin and Sister Peltier went with him as I tried to track down investigators. After a while they came out and told me about it! There was a man at church that we had seen the week before and asked about. He is a boyfriend of an inactive member. They came to church because the missionary that baptized the woman came back to German to visit and they came along to church. This week the man came back and as my companions talk to him he explained that he wants to be baptized!!!!!!! WOW WOW WOW!!!!! He said he knows that he can't live with the girl and be baptized so they are working on that. But he had already bought a Book of Mormon and Bible and explained that he thinks he has everything ready to get started! We set up Termine for every week to work with him! And he said that he and his girlfriend have the goal of getting married in the Temple!!!!! WOW WOW WOW!!!! I couldn't believe it! A Golden investigator falls into our hands plus an inactive member we have been trying to get a hold of is being reactivated!!! We consider ourselves to be very very lucky to be here right now. The Lord is in charge of His work and He is preparing His children to receive His gospel! I'm so grateful for the chance to be here on a mission! I am learning so much every single day and I know more and more every day that our Heavenly Father and Savior live! They love us so much and have a plan for us. This earth life is a time to prepare us to live with Him again. We need to always be ready, like our wonder prophet, to respond to the promptings of the Spirit and help those around us in need. This is our responsibility as members of His church and I hope we can all live up to it so that one day we will stand before Him and He will say, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant!" I love this Gospel and I love sharing it with others! We are so blessed to be here on the earth at this time.
I love you all and hope to hear from you soon. I hope all is well.
Until next week
Liebe Grüße,
Sister Smith
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