Obviously last week we got to go to the temple. It was so awesome. I love going there and it's always a great experience. I love going and learning there. There is always something to learn in the temple, no matter how many times you have been. Go often! It's awesome.
This week we met again with a lady named Carrie that we met last week. We visited with her on Saturday, and brought some members with us. The members (the Ladners) were going to give Carrie a ride to church on Sunday, so we took them over to meet Carrie. We had a pretty good lesson with her, and we talked about the importance of the Book of Mormon and also what to expect at church. She was pretty excited to come. However, go figure, the Ladners came to church Sunday morning and told us that Carrie wasn't ready to go and wasn't planning on coming that day. I've seen this happen several times, but it does not get any less frustrating. People literally tell us the day before that they are coming to church (and we even get them a ride that shows up to their house to bring them) and then they flake. Whatever, we still love them and want to help them. I just wish that they wanted to help themselves, too.
That same day we took the Ladnerss to go se Barbara. Remember her? She was pretty solid a few weeks ago and then kind of just fell off the map. Well, we went to go see her and she was home and we had a lesson with her. She said she had been reading the Book of Mormon a little bit, and wanted to come to church. She is busy the next couple weekends, but she should be coming to church in a few weeks. That's pretty cool. Hopefully she'll continue to read the Book of Mormon and we can help her to progress and learn. It should be good!
We met a couple of ladies this week tracting named Brenda and Tiffany whom we taught the Restoration to on their porch. We gave them each a copy of the Book of Mormon, and we made a follow-up appointment for the next day. We basically retaught them the Restoration because they didn't get it very well, but by the end of our second visit, Brenda understood it for the most part. We really focused with her on the Priesthood and its necessity. She seemed to understand it by the end of the lesson. We're going to see them again this week (hopefully).
There is another lady named Virginia whom Elder Furgeson and I met and taught a little a few weeks ago. We haven't seen her in a few weeks, and so Elder Tyrell and I stopped by this week. One of the first things she said to us when we walked up was, "I have an issue with Joseph Smith." We asked her to elaborate. She said, "Well, he's not in the Bible. So I just can't believe that he's a prophet?" Oh boy, here we go. Well, I asked her a couple of questions that I have often asked people. 1) Do you believe that God worked through prophets in the past (Abraham, Noah, Moses, etc.)? 2) Do you believe that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, as the Bible so declares? 3) Does it not make sense that God still works with prophets today? Most people don't know how to respond. Virginia just said that prophets ended when the Law of Moses was "done away with" when Christ came. In Preach My Gospel, it says to respond to objection with the Book of Mormon, so that's what I did. I asked her if she had read the Book of Mormon at all, to which she responded "no." I just told her that we could show her all throughout the Bible evidences that God works with prophets, and that Jesus Christ established His church. We could show her the correct organization of the Church, and we could show her that the Apostasy happened, and that the Restoration was foretold. Yes, we could show her all of that. However, the most convincing evidence of all of this is in the Book of Mormon. We invited her (like we invite everyone) to read, ponder, and pray about the Book of Mormon. For if it is true, and millions now have testified that it is, then Joseph Smith is truly a prophet, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is exactly what it claims to be - the Lord's Kingdom on Earth. That's one of my favorite testimonies to bear, because I know without a doubt that it is true. I also know that any and all who read, ponder, and pray about the Book of Mormon with the intent to know that it is true, will come to know that it is. What a great promise! Anyway, Virginia asked us to give her a week to read, so hopefully we will see her again soon.
I told y'all about the Cockrells last week. Well, they didn't show up to church on Sunday. Not sure why. I don't really want to delay their baptism if we don't have to, because they have been to church many times before. However, I want them to understand the importance of the covenant they are entering into before they actually do it. I don't want anyone to make covenants when they are unprepared to do so. That doesn't help anyone. We do have appointments with them on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, so I hope that all goes well.
Alright everyone, that's all for this week. There was a little more to it, but those are the major points. I love y'all, and I'm so thankful for each of you who take time to read these letters, to pray for me and the people I work with, and to show me such great love and support. You're always in my prayers, and I'm thankful to know that I am in yours. Love you guys!
Love,
Elder Beach
#RollTide
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Temple trip!
Only in Alabama!
Elder Tyrell!
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