Hello my family and friends! It has been quite the week and it hasn't really even been a whole week since I emailed last so that is sayin' somethin' haha(:
Well to start off...our baptism fell through. Not the best way to start an email...but its been on our minds a lot since it happened and its been hard to think about anything else really. During sacrament meeting on Sunday - Sora B Armstrong and I received a phone call from our Investigator with a Baptismal date - named Alesea. We were hoping that she was coming to church and had just gotten lost or something, and so we quietly stepped out into the hall to give her a call back - but it wasn't what we were expecting at all. Alesea opened right up with the statement "I can't do the baptism on Thursday." and began to explain why.
I can't explain how I felt in that moment - but to be honest - it was hard. And I was really confused and just really..let down I guess. We had been working so hard with her and we loved her SO much and we had both wanted this SO bad for her, but she wasn't ready.
We went out to go see her yesterday and she immediately jumped into the why which was good. She feels like she isn't ready to renounce her old church, like she isn't ready to push away her family...but she did say that this church is true -just that now isn't her time.
It was heartbreaking - but it was all okay. and I truly have an incredible amount of hope and faith that she will take that step towards baptism, it just might not be as soon as we thought.
Things always seem to have a way of working out - even if we are in the dark for a while. I've seen this several times in my life, and while it is hard at first - if we push forward in that darkness and keep trying our best - God is going to provide a way.
In 1 Nephi chapter 4 - it talks about how Laman and Lemuel and Nephi and Sam are given the big and hard task to go all the way across the wilderness, go into a kingdom and ask for a set of brass plates from a king who they know will not just hand them over. I often think that if it were me in that situation- I would be freakin out! And probably ask Heavenly Father or my father Lehi if there was any other way. But I love what Nephi says. "Yes," he says. "I will go and do and follow God." But, he also says in verse 6 that he didn't know what he was going to do. I can just imagine that he would be feeling the same feelings as Alesea did as her baptism got closer, or similar to how we all feel as we go though any new trial or hard thing - we would feel lost, confused, afraid, and alone.
YET! What does Nephi say in the next verse? "Nevertheless, I went forth."
HOW COOL RIGHT? He is saying that if we go forward relying and trusting and having faith in our Heavenly Father and our Son Jesus Christ - there is absolutely NO WAY that they are going to leave us alone! They were there for me, they were there for Nephi and his brothers, and I know that they will be there for Alesea and for YOU! If we continuously press forward - regardless of all the pain, sorrow, and fear - there will be a light at the end of the tunnel.
I love you all and I hope you are pressing forward with all the new challenges of school(: haha(: I love you!!!
Sora Armstrong
This is a DOG!!! Does it not look like a bear???????????? Seriously, I was terrified.... these wild dogs just basically freak me out hahaha. Mitch would have loved this dog though!
We had an INCREDIBLE lesson with Grace on Sunday! We found Tagalog Books of Mormon for her and for her friends - and we were able to share our stories as to why it is important to US!(: Grace has gone through some hard things - but she is such a ROCKSTAR and has been totally relying on God and prayer now and throughout her life! She is continuing to progress so much and it has been such a blessing to be teaching her(:
No comments:
Post a Comment