I loved this week!
I know I say that like every week, but
seriously this week was amazing.
On Monday, we took a garden tour of Temple
Square (we had 1 hour of Explore Day left and so we used it!). Our favorite
Suzette was our garden guide. She took us all around the Church Office Building
and back behind the Beehive House and told us about all the flowers and why
they have been specifically chosen to be planted where they are at.
They are
re-doing all the flowers on Temple Square tomorrow, so no more tulips. I highly
recommend garden tours if ever you are on Temple Square.
I felt so motivated to
have a garden when I get off my mission and I've always hated gardening so it
was kind of ground breaking for me. (haha) Gardening is in my genes though, so I think
it was a prompting that it's something I should do in my later years.
The reason this week was amazing was because of the people
we met and talked to. On Sunday we talked to the sweetest dad. He had 3 little
kids with him and we just asked him what he feels is the most important thing
to teach his children.
He said service. He went on about how when we serve
others, we are serving and loving God and thus keeping the first and second
greatest commandments.
He talked about how people are so unhappy in this world
and it's because people are so focused on themselves. He said if he can just
teach his children to forget themselves and serve others, everything else will
work itself out.
He made parenting seem simple when he put it like that, but I
definitely think there was so much truth to all that he said.
We also found 2 new investigators this week!! Sis Kemple and
I were helping some sisters in our district practice what we call "passing
off." When you are a new missionary, you and your companion have to take
your zone leaders, who pretend to be guests, on a tour of Temple Square and
figure out their needs and help them have a spiritual and uplifting experience
here.
So anyways, we were helping the sisters practice and these 3 people just
came up to all 4 of us and asked us why there are cows in the temple. We
explained about baptisms and then kept talking to them.
One of them was a new
member of the church and he was there with his 2 friends. We started talking to
them more and they told us that they were up in SLC for treatment because they
all are recovering from substance abuse. They were amazing. They each told us
little pieces of their stories and ended up giving us all of their numbers.
We
called one of the girls yesterday and she's going to meet with local
missionaries this week!
We also found a new investigator from mormon.org. She is so sweet! She gave us her
number right away and we called and talked to her for just like 10 minutes but
she told us she has a friend who's a member and has tried so many different
churches and just really feels like God is trying to help her find the right
path. She literally invited herself to go to church this Sunday! Also Dad, I am
now starting to realize how much I say the word "literally" and I've
made a promise to myself to stop and so when I get home you literally won't
hear me say it ever again.
The other little miracle we had was a tour we took on
Wednesday. It was just one lady and she was from Washington! So we all bonded
right away. Her husband actually is a member of the church but he hasn't been
to church in ages and so she said she didn't really know much about how the
church was restored. She had just kind of heard random facts throughout the
years.
The tour was just so special because it's not very often that tours are
just 1 on 1 and there was just a lot of things that she really needed to talk
about. She needed to feel the peace that exists on Temple Square and feel
renewed hope.
This week I have just felt so blessed to be a missionary here.
God truly does send each individual here for a reason. Even if they're not
ready to meet with local missionaries or accept everything right at this
moment, they can feel the peace that exists on this 32 acre square. You just
can't NOT feel it when you are here!
Last little miracle is just being Sister Kemple's companion.
She's amazing. I have learned so much from her.
She met the coolest girl on
Tuesday. We were assigned to stand at the desk in the North Visitor's Center
for an hour and I was busy off doing something and she went up and started
talking to a girl and her dad.
The girl and her dad (both who hadn't been to
church in years) had been sitting up by the Christus statue talking about
trials and discussing how it's possible that God could care about us and give
us so many challenges.
When they came downstairs, Sis K started talking to them
about exactly that and had no idea that's what they had previously been
discussing. She shared about having cancer (which she literally never talks
about) and the girl just completely opened up to her and ended up coming back
to the Square this morning.
I think what I've learned most from Sister Kemple
is to follow the Spirit and to live life in a way that the Spirit can always be
present. She is such a great missionary. I can't believe we only have 2.5 more
weeks together.
Also, I know I've said this before, buttttt, I'm pretty sure
I'm going outbound next transfer. I'll be done training and more than half the
missionaries I came to Temple Square with are currently outbound. Part of me
really doesn't want to go yet because we've found all these amazing people to
teach and summer on Temple Square is madness but so fun. I'll know if I'm going
on May 18th so I'll keep you posted. I would get to call home for 5 minutes and
tell you if I am going! So keep an eye on your phone a week from Monday.:)
Love you so much! See you (Skyping for Mother's Day) on Sunday!
Sister Helton
No comments:
Post a Comment