Dear everyone,
I have never been so happy in my life! Are people just stupid to not serve a mission? Honestly, this calling brings the best feeling. I am so grateful God is letting me experience the gospel change people, as well as myself. Amanda just glows. She is soooooo happy. The promise in Moroni 10:4&5 is real. Amanda can tell you herself, and has been telling her friends and family (in China) that this church is true. She set up a blog and shares the gospel with them. The government is so strict there, mormon.org and lds.org do not even work. A member in the branch served in Hong Kong and said many people from main land traveled to Hong Kong to be baptized and then returned to China. I imagine that is what her husband will have to do. She's been skyping with him and their daughter daily since we've met with her and he now has a book of mormon. They pray together over skype and she told us yesterday he knows the church is true to. He received a witness to his heart too! Yesterday at church she said she wants to get baptized with him. We testified that the Lord will provide a way for him to be baptized and he doesn't give commandments that cannot be accomplished. She kept saying, "I know." She hugs us whenever we tell her stuff like that and says, "Thank you, thank you." She said she will let us know on Tuesday if he is okay with her getting baptized without him.
Over the weekend, Amanda went to Palmyra to see the Sacred Grove (with Branch members) as well as the Hill Comurah Pagaent. Before she went there, Saturday, the Elders in Trumansburg used the font in the Ithaca Chapel to baptize one of their investigators. We invited her to that. She came and brought two friends. We had no idea she was bringing friends. They both said they are interested and felt "touched". So now we're going to start teaching them. They'll come to her baptism, and hopefully she'll even have more friends come to it. These people in China are so ready for the gospel, and there is a way it can be brought to their country, by experiences like this.
One member in the branch is from China and just got back from visiting there. He said if someone is baptized, he or she can attend church there in mainland, but if they are not baptized, they can only attend one time, and no more. This morning he gave us the area authority's phone number to give to Amanda and said she can call him about locations. She was so happy when we told her she can attend church when she goes back. She called him (this morning) and said she'd call us after she talked to him, so we're waiting on a call from her, to see how far the closest branch is to her hometown. We're not worried that it will make or break her decision to be baptized, because she assumed she couldn't attend church and still wanted to go forward and be baptized. This is just going to be a huge incentive! She could possibly attend church with her family there!!
More investigator news: Xun Dai's family (also from China) is in town. They were all at church yesterday too!! They are only here for 3 weeks. We're praying they receive a witness that it is true before they go back to China. We met with them Saturday, they came to church yesterday, and we're meeting with them twice this week. They will be in town for Amanda's baptism, whenever it is... hopefully this saturday or next, and that will be neat for them to see her enter the waters of baptism.
Things are just going wonderfully. The Lord is blessing this area and the people here with answers to their prayers. My only wish would be for you to witness all of this too, to be here in our lessons, to hear the testimonies of those recent converts and investigators. It makes me cry to hear them express their gratitude for the knowledge they now have. I love being an instrument in the Lord's hands. He needs more missionaries. There is so much work to be done.
Zone Conference was great too. I love President Bulloch. He inspires me so much. I have more to say but time is up. I'll write you. I love you!
I'll attach some pictures from Zone Conference and this past week in an email after this.
I have never been so happy in my life! Are people just stupid to not serve a mission? Honestly, this calling brings the best feeling. I am so grateful God is letting me experience the gospel change people, as well as myself. Amanda just glows. She is soooooo happy. The promise in Moroni 10:4&5 is real. Amanda can tell you herself, and has been telling her friends and family (in China) that this church is true. She set up a blog and shares the gospel with them. The government is so strict there, mormon.org and lds.org do not even work. A member in the branch served in Hong Kong and said many people from main land traveled to Hong Kong to be baptized and then returned to China. I imagine that is what her husband will have to do. She's been skyping with him and their daughter daily since we've met with her and he now has a book of mormon. They pray together over skype and she told us yesterday he knows the church is true to. He received a witness to his heart too! Yesterday at church she said she wants to get baptized with him. We testified that the Lord will provide a way for him to be baptized and he doesn't give commandments that cannot be accomplished. She kept saying, "I know." She hugs us whenever we tell her stuff like that and says, "Thank you, thank you." She said she will let us know on Tuesday if he is okay with her getting baptized without him.
Over the weekend, Amanda went to Palmyra to see the Sacred Grove (with Branch members) as well as the Hill Comurah Pagaent. Before she went there, Saturday, the Elders in Trumansburg used the font in the Ithaca Chapel to baptize one of their investigators. We invited her to that. She came and brought two friends. We had no idea she was bringing friends. They both said they are interested and felt "touched". So now we're going to start teaching them. They'll come to her baptism, and hopefully she'll even have more friends come to it. These people in China are so ready for the gospel, and there is a way it can be brought to their country, by experiences like this.
One member in the branch is from China and just got back from visiting there. He said if someone is baptized, he or she can attend church there in mainland, but if they are not baptized, they can only attend one time, and no more. This morning he gave us the area authority's phone number to give to Amanda and said she can call him about locations. She was so happy when we told her she can attend church when she goes back. She called him (this morning) and said she'd call us after she talked to him, so we're waiting on a call from her, to see how far the closest branch is to her hometown. We're not worried that it will make or break her decision to be baptized, because she assumed she couldn't attend church and still wanted to go forward and be baptized. This is just going to be a huge incentive! She could possibly attend church with her family there!!
More investigator news: Xun Dai's family (also from China) is in town. They were all at church yesterday too!! They are only here for 3 weeks. We're praying they receive a witness that it is true before they go back to China. We met with them Saturday, they came to church yesterday, and we're meeting with them twice this week. They will be in town for Amanda's baptism, whenever it is... hopefully this saturday or next, and that will be neat for them to see her enter the waters of baptism.
Things are just going wonderfully. The Lord is blessing this area and the people here with answers to their prayers. My only wish would be for you to witness all of this too, to be here in our lessons, to hear the testimonies of those recent converts and investigators. It makes me cry to hear them express their gratitude for the knowledge they now have. I love being an instrument in the Lord's hands. He needs more missionaries. There is so much work to be done.
Zone Conference was great too. I love President Bulloch. He inspires me so much. I have more to say but time is up. I'll write you. I love you!
I'll attach some pictures from Zone Conference and this past week in an email after this.
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