Tuesday, September 25, 2012

THE BEREA TRIANGLE

Ok. I guess I should write this. I've been dinking around reading old emails because I don't want to write because this has been the longest week I've had since the beginning of my mission. But at least it's been a good long. I just can look back on Thursday and feel like it was three weeks ago. I already know I'm going to leave stuff out, but I'll give the best highlights I can.

Worst things first: Trinia won't talk to us. She won't answer her phone or the door. The other day we knew she was in there and we asked her to open up and we even sang a hymn on her porch. But she wouldn't come out. It's been hard. I hope she'll recognize the difference in her life without the gospel and that she'll know she can call us when she's ready.


Elder Edwards, Sister Noakes and I are all from Las Vegas
 and all used to be in the Kentuckiana District together.
 They're in the other zone that meets with the
 Lexington Zone at 
Zone Conferences
so we had a reunion.

Best things second: Adam! So, we had zone conference on Tuesday and it was amazing   and after Zone Conference we started a blitz with the Corbin Sisters since they had to drive past Berea to get back to Corbin we figured it would save them miles instead of having to come back up another week for the blitz. Anyways, I was with Sister West and Sister Mickelsen was with Sister Earl. Because we've been trying to make sure that Adam and Maelyn's testimonies are individual we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to teach them individually. Sisters M and E took Maelyn and Sister W and I took Adam. We met Adam at the library and we were going to show him around Mormon.org but when we got there he wanted to talk about the night we'd had at the Prices' watching that movie about Christ in America, The Testaments. 

So we did. Then he said he wanted to read about it in the Book of Mormon so we started reading in 3 Nephi. Then we started talking about Christ and sadness and hope and everything. Then he brought up temples. He wants to go inside one so badly. I told him that he will go inside one someday, after his baptism. And he was like, "Yep. For sure." I was taken aback a little because he usually laughs a little when I mention his baptism. But this time he agreed with it. So I asked him about his prayers and the answers he's seeking. He said that he hasn't had any answers yet but that he's been getting help that he's needed. I asked for what and he said for patience and purity. He said he's been so peaceful lately. So, we read Galatians 5 with him and talked about the fruits of the Spirit and talked about recognizing that his feelings are his answers. Then he asked what he'd have to do in order to be baptized and when he'd have to quit smoking and coffee and then we talked about a baptism date and I asked him to pray to know when the Lord knows he can be ready for baptism. He said he would! 

The next day we said a prayer together and looked at my calendar and he said, "October 27th." And so he has a date to be baptized on Hayley's birthday! It's so neat to see how the Spirit has been gradually working on him. He told me that his Mom will disown him and he's going to be homeless because he can't live with Maelyn anymore and he can't live with anyone else because they're all pot-heads and he can't be around that temptation. He's looking for a job right now but he said if he has to live in a tent to be baptized he will. We're praying really hard that he'll find a place to live. I know the Lord will bless him. Sister Mickelsen says, "Sometimes the Lord empties your hands so He can fill them with blessings." Please pray for Adam. The adversary is already attacking him. He's already having people die and go to the hospital around him so he can't make our lessons and he missed church yesterday, too. He's going to be such a great asset to the Church. Satan does not want him to join. Please pray for him. Oh, and after our lesson he asked what Sister West and I were doing next and we told him we had a lesson with some people and he asked if he could tag along. 

 So he came and we had almost a member present lesson (which is the best lesson to have with an investigator) except he's not a member yet. So it was like an investigator present lesson. He came in and invited them to church and really connected with them because he's really country and so are they. Then he was like, "Do they have a Book of Mormon?" "Yes." "Good. You should have them read from Three Nephi. Have you read Three Nephi yet? You'll love it!" Later on he brought up Priesthood and was like, "There's two kinds. There's the Milk... Milk? What's the Milk one called again?" Haha. So then we explained Melchizedek Priesthood and the Aaronic Priesthood. It was awesome. He's awesome. Oh yeah. And he's half Native American so he said he'd make me a dream catcher. He says that helps with his nightmares. I just love Lamanites.


The creepy spider is dead! Sister Mickelsen never would do it so there's this girl who has her papers in and is waiting for her call and she comes with us to appointments and stuff and she was over and before we left for an appointment I begged her to kill the spider so she got her shoe and flung him from our window onto the ground outside and then she went downstairs and smashed it and I could finally breathe again. I sent a pictures so you can take in just how big that thing really was. I will forever be a friend to Lainy Barrick because of the service she gave me in killing that spider. 

So, those who know me fairly well know that I love the show, I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant. Well, we were talking to this lady named Julie (I sent a picture last week of her and her adorable fifth child, Junior. Well, she was telling us about having her first child. She said she had really bad cramps one day and went to the hospital and she found out she was in LABOR! She was 7 and 1/2 months pregnant and had NO IDEA! She hadn't gained weight and was on birth control and didn't ever feel him kicking or anything. She went from being a regular person to a MOM within an hour. It was crazy! It made me happy that I actually met someone who didn't know she was pregnant! My life is almost complete!

Berea had its annual Spoon Bread Festival this weekend. Spoon Bread is like soggy cornbread. It's not THAT bad though. It's just different. Anyways, during festival times, all the billies come out from their hills and it's the perfect place to talk to people. We walked around for a couple hours and met people and it was great. There was one thing at the festival though that I HAVE to tell you about, only because it's so Kentucky. We were walking and saw a big blow up thing like those bouncy houses people rent for their kids' birthday parties. This was shaped like a tunnel though and you could walk through it. But it was an ENORMOUS COLON. It was Kentucky's creative way of showing the different stages from a healthy colon to a sick colon. I couldn't believe it. And people were walking through it! Sister M was like, "Do you want to walk through it?" I was like, "My mother would never let me back into her house if she knew I had walked through a colon." We chose to walk around the colon. Gag. Haha.

Question: What do you say to an investigator who complains about the women who knit during sacrament meeting? I just told her, "It bothers me, too. It is not appropriate and I'm sorry that she does that." I didn't know what else to say.

One of our next door neighbors is a guy named Yohance. He's a tall, skinny, black guy and he's living with a short, round, white girl. Any quesses on how you pronounce his name? Here you go: it's yo as in "Yoda", han as in "Han Solo" and ce as in "Jar-Jar Binks". Fine... it's ce as in "Say what?" It reminds me of when Sis and BIL were dating and I used to call him Broance.

I met these people in the ward on Sunday who are related to us. Their last name is Meeks. They're from the same Athe Meeks who got killed by a tomahawk. They're from Priddy's line. We're from Athe Jr.'s line. Crazy. Cousins in Berea and cousins in Corbin and a Papaw and Mamaw in Salem. Haha.

The other night Sister Mickelsen and I were leaving the church in Richmond to get to an appointment in Berea.  The appointment was is an area that's so sketchy and cars get broken into all the time there and there's just a lot of creepy people around at night. The people asked us to just stop by for a second before going home. It was dark and if I had been thinking clearly I would have said we shouldn't go. But I was worn out from the stress of the day and neither of us thought about it so we headed to Berea. Well, the on-ramp to the freeway was closed so I decided to take the old highway. We headed south for 45 minutes and DID NOT TURN EVER. I don't know how, but after heading south for 45 minutes we pulled up in the Church parking lot again. No, it's not some loop I didn't realize I was on. I've tried repeating it in the daytime and can't figure out how we ended up back at home. We actually traveled home successfully the second time in that exact route we tried to take the first time. I don't know how it happened. It was the Bermuda Triangle effect or something. It was crazy. We were screaming because it was so wierd. Later I felt like the Lord was protecting us from danger that we would have met if we had made it to that appointment. Because we had to make the trek from Berea to Richmond a second time we barely made it home by curfew and had to skip seeing those people in the sketchy neighborhood. I know the Lord did that to protect us. I'm very grateful He did.

Ok. Well, I'm sorry, but I have to run. We just got talking to this guy in the library and we're going to have a lesson with him tomorrow. But I ran out of time on here because we were talking to him for so long so the computer is going to kick me off. But actually I'm not sorry. I'm excited to teach him.

Quote of the Week: "He that tooteth not his own horn, his horn never tooteth."
Extra Blessings: Dad, Paige, Pinegar Grandparents & Otie

Aunt Suzanne emailed me and shared with me something so profound that the new temple president in Brigham City shared at the dedication. He talked about how when Christ comes again and invites us to come see him in the temple, we won't be able to quickly call our Bishop and Stake President to ask for a recommend. They'll be with the Savior. So, we need to always have and be worthy of a recommend. I'd hate to be like those 5 virgins who were without oil in their lamps when the bridegroom came. We should always live worthily to go to the temple. Not only will it save us heartache, but it will bring us blessings.

I love you all. The Church is TRUE! Share it!

Love Yuns,

Sis


PS- Sorry I didn't get time to edit this. I hope it makes sense.

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