Hey everyone, sorry for the late update! It's me, Elder Z.S.Weber, signing in again to give you the amazing and awesome news from the Boulder Zone in the Colorado Fort Collins Mission. And, let me just tell you that this week truly was awesome, and well worth the wait. You see, rather than spend our P-Day on Monday and send out our emails home then, like we normally would, Elder Buchanan and I felt prompted to move our P-Day over to today, Wednesday, so that we could get permission from President Brown to go down to Denver earlier today and spend our morning doing some work in the Denver Colorado Temple.
And, oh my goodness, was it worth it! I have really missed being in the temple, being able to feel the presence of the Holy Ghost so tangible all around me, to know that what I am doing as a servant and missionary for our Lord Jesus Christ--there is just nothing like it in the world!
And with all the other amazing and awesome moments that Elder Buchanan and I were able to have throughout the week, I can definitely say that this was a truly spectacular week, one of the best ones I've had on the mission by far! So, without further ado...here we go!
As you already know from my past emails, missionaries are expected to lend a certain amount of hours each week to community service, helping the community we all live in flourish and grow. Well, we were certainly able to devote a lot of hours this week, as Elder Buchanan, myself, and Elders Stone and Fuhriman were asked to help pull up thistles that covered the side yard of an Emergency Family Aid group known as "EFAA". And let me tell you--that was some serious work, there! In case you haven't ever had to do weeding before, let me give you some insight on thistles.
Thistles can't just be chopped down and squirted with week-killer. Nope. Those weeds are much too strong and much too hardy to be taken out just like that. You have to actually dig the dirt out away from the base of the week for about two or three inches, that way you have something to grab that isn't covered with spiky, spiny thistle-barbs, and then, using brute strength alone, pull the weed back up out of the ground with the root intact. It was, and is, horrific. Some of the roots were at least two feet long, and with all the spines and barbs, us four elders had our arms, legs, and who-knows-what-else covered in rashes and cuts for the rest of the day. But in the end, it was all well worth it.
Along with service, this week was also great for missionary work. Last week, Elder Buchanan and I committed ourselves to be as serious and consecrated of missionaries as possible, in the hopes that we would be able to find some of our brothers and sisters who would be willing to listen to the message of the Restoration of the Gospel in the Fullness of Times. We spend many hours over the week knocking on doors, tracting out neighborhoods, asking for referrals from members...it was truly, and utterly exhausting. However, it was all paid off when, on Friday afternoon, we got a text from the Ward's Bishop, telling us that he wanted us to stop by a less-active family called the Gotschalks. The husband, apparently, is a non-member, but he's had positive experiences with missionaries in the past. And the wife, who is a member, wants to start coming back to church. We managed to stop by them on Sunday, and after talking for a while Elder Buchanan and I both felt that we would be able to work more with the family in the future, and perhaps be able to lead not only Sister Gotschalk back to church, but Brother Gotschalk back to his Savior, and into the waters of baptism. Definitely looking forward to working more with both the Gotschalks and the Spirit that fills their home in the future!
That wasn't the only miraculous moment with finding, either. Because Elder Buchanan and I decided to move our P-Day to Wednesday this week, we had to do normal missionary work on Monday. I wasn't too enthusiastic about that, seeing as we were now out of miles on our car, and had to bike for the rest of the month (cue sarcastic "yaaaay"), but in spite of our troubles, Elder Buchanan and I were able to have a terrific day filled with work on Monday. We biked up and down the hills that led to our area in Erie, Colorado, stopping by less-actives and part-member-families, trying to find someone, anyone to teach. And then it happened. About half-an-hour before dinner, Elder Buchanan and I decided to tract around the neighborhood our dinner was in, and teach just one discussion with someone. After knocking a few doors, we found this ex-Deist/agnostic, probably no older than twenty-four, who was interested in hearing what we had to say. Taking into consideration his beliefs and understanding of God, Elder Buchanan felt prompted to teach him about the Book of Mormon, how it answers the questions of the soul, and used the story of Ammon and the Lamanite King, Lamoni, (found in Alma 18) to teach him about God. The spirit was so powerful, it was crazy. Afterwords, we were able to give him, who by the way was named Matthew, a Book of Mormon, and he seemed very eager to read it that night. Had we spent P-Day that day, instead of moving it to today, all of that would not have happened. It was amazing, and truly awesome!
Finally, that brings me to today, and my spiritual thought for the week. Today, Elder Buchanan and I had the special chance to go and spend our morning doing work in the Temple of our Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ. As missionaries in the Colorado Fort Collins Mission, we only get to go to the temple once every year, due to the temple being so far out of our Mission's boundaries. Regardless, that just makes the trip so much more special, and powerful, for when we do get to go. For those of you who may not know much about the temples, this message is for you. First of all, the temple is a place where things that are truly sacred, not secret, take place. It is in the temple where we are able to do the work and preform the tasks necessary for those who have passed on to receive exaltation and eternal life. By proxy, or in otherwords, as a substitute for the deceased person, we make covenants and promises that are extremely special and sacred, and kept between us and the Lord. Don't ask me about the specifics, because I cannot, and will not, disclose them. For those of you who do know of the specifics, though, and understand the meaning behind the temples, then you and I can both agree on this. The temple truly is the "Holiness to the Lord, the House of the Lord." It is there where we receive further enlightenment from God on our purpose, and gain further blessings and covenants to strengthen us in our lives. I am proud that I am worthy and able to partake in such blessings from the temple--blessings that I know, through my belief in my Lord and Savior, will carry me on to exaltation and eternal life.
In the sacred name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
--Elder Z.S.Weber
NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.
No comments:
Post a Comment