Hey!!
This week has been an absolutely InSaNe week! Probably one of the craziest weeks of my mission, seriously!
Training is kinda crazy, not in the way I expected exactly (doing it all yourself, or having her say awkward things, or weird moments), but more that Sister Harris and I keep having really weird moments. Like the moment that we were supposed to be doing twelve week (the program they have new missionaries and their trainers do every morning for the first twelve weeks), and a member calls and begs us to go to a relief society activity because no one showed up. I really wasn't too pleased about missing the VERY FIRST DAY of Twelve week (President REALLY focused on that in the trainers meeting), but we're now certified in CPR. And so are the Elders. :)
So, another crazy experience of this week. Dad, do you remember how you always told us about that crazy moment right before you and mom were going to get married and one of our great-aunts grabbed both of your hands and started praying for you and it was super awkward? Yeah... that totally happened to us this week. Actually last night. Oh boy! It was crazy.
We were walking in the park, trying to find people to talk to, and a small group of people shouted out, "Hey! Do you know Jesus?" That really wasn't terribly difficult question for us to answer, but the weird part was the weird spirit that came with it... It was really not the spirit I am used to. They started testifying to us, and we started testifying to them, and before I knew it they were praying over us, and doing some of the weirdest chanting. It was weird!!! Like Mega weird. In my mind I was like "Shoot. Heavenly Father, I don't know what's going on here. This is weird. Please protect us from anything bad. I don't know how to get out of here. Shoot! How do we get out of here? Please protect my poor greenie! Oh this is not what I expected." Then, suddenly the guy started "prophesying" about "daddy issues" and talking about how one of us has a dad that abandoned us, and my companion started crying, and I was freaking out going "No! This is not real! Its not true, Its not real. I don't know how they know about anything from your past, but it isn't the Spirit!! PLEASE don't believe anything they said. Augh! Please end this quickly! Please help us get out of here!!!" I'm pretty sure everyone that was "praying" over us could see my stone face because they then asked if I had anything that needed praying over, and I said I was good. They then told us that Jesus loves us and is proud of what we were doing, and then we separated.
Ohh!! I was SO terrified of what my companion was thinking!! In my mind I was still freaking out, thinking of things to say, and suddenly she burst out laughing. She just laughed and laughed and laughed for a good 5 min. Oh, that was the best laugh I've ever heard! Turns out she hadn't been crying, she had just been trying really hard not to laugh. And oh! It actually was quite hilarious. They were just sitting there chanting "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus" over and over again, prophesying over things that couldn't be further from the truth, and calling it spiritual. Yeah... :) Other religions. SO grateful to be a Mormon! Honestly.
When you try to think over things intellectually, they often get kinda confusing, and it is hard to see why our church has anything over any other good Christian church. But Paul really knew what he was talking about when he said, "Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Corintians 2:13-14). With our own logic, we cannot explain nor understand our church. It is by the fruits of the Spirit
that we know the church is true. There really is a specific spirit that comes with our church, just as with any thing else. Its hard to appreciate that feeling when you've grown up with it, but it really is there, and it really is true. We can say what we say and do what we do because of the feeling we have. It isn't through any way that is appreciated by man, but it is because we have felt the Spirit speak to us, Spirit to Spirit. And coming to discern and trust that Spirit is SO important.
Now, lest you think I spent my entire week hanging around crazies, Sister Harris and I had two absolutely fantastic lessons this week. Her first day here was kinda crazy. We spent pretty much all day trying to take a member to appointments that kept falling through. But for our last appointment, we were finally alone (which was good because its kinda hard to train when you have members there... mostly because members also have to be trained, but trained in a different way...). There was this lady we had tracted into, prayed with and she accepted a return appointment. This was the return appointment. It was an absolutely incredible lesson, absolutely incredible!! It was one of those lessons where EVERYTHING went right; Sister Harris contributed a fair amount, the lady asked a bunch of good questions, and we even left a pretty clear baptismal invite. The coolest moment of the lesson came when she was praying. We were using a praying tool from zone conference, and suddenly she went off of the things she had written and started thanking the Lord for us being there, asking to know if she should stay with the Baptist church or go to the Mormon church, and asking for help as she read the Book of Mormon. It was the coolest prayer ever!! Afterwards we were walking away (about 20ft off the ground), and Sister Harris turned to me and said, "Is this what it always feels like?" It was one of the sweetest moments of my life. So sweet.
Its been a good week. :) We've had a lot of great moments. A lot of great spiritual moments. I hope it continues.
Thanks so much for all you do! Hope you all have a great week! I miss you all bunches and think of you often!
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