Dustin and his family were all set to come to church last last week (the 24th), but they all ended up getting really sick on Saturday and decided not to come. That was a major bummer, but as we met with him in the days following, he promised us that he would come this Sunday (the 31st). We were over at his house on Saturday the 30th to help him clean some stuff out - his house is pretty much a disaster, and so we helped him clear out a bunch of stuff so that they could have a cleaner, happier house. Anyway, that Saturday we made sure that he would be at church; we even gave him a church tour on the Friday previous. The whole family was set to be there. We asked Dustin if we could come wake them up in the morning, but he just asked us to call. So on Sunday morning about 1:45 before Sacrament meeting started, we called to wake him up and nobody answered. We finished getting ready and then went over to his house to make sure he was up. We spent about 20 minutes knocking the door and calling him, but nothing. The whole time I could just hear in my mind President Sainsbury saying, "Do everything you can to get your investigators to church." Well, we did everything we could short of walking uninvited into his house. He never did wake up.
While that was also a bummer, Deana did show up at church. We hadn't been able to get a hold of her during the previous couple of days, so we were worried that she wouldn't show. When she walked in I was so happy/relieved/excited. After Sacrament meeting we were talking with her and what she told us made me even more happy. She basically told us that everything I had been praying for in her behalf was happening - she was doing better at being confident and taking the initiative in doing what is right. Also, her husband (while still not completely on board) is being more tolerant of her decisions to come to church and meet with us missionaries. I'm so thankful for the power of prayer, and I'm thankful to all of you who have had Deana in your prayers. Please continue to do so.
Last night (Jan 1) we went over to Dustin's house to see what was up with him. He told us that the entire family "didn't even wake up until like 1 PM." I kind of doubt that they never once heard the phone ring since we called 12 times, or hear our knocking on the door for 20 minutes. I am amazed sometimes at how lazy he is, and honestly feel sometimes like we are wasting our time with him. But then I just think about how far he has come, how much the Gospel can and will mean to him and his family, and that he is a beloved child of God. He NEEDS the Gospel, and right now we are the ones to deliver it, so that's what we will keep doing: teaching him, inviting him, and being patient with him.
Yesterday (also Jan 1) before we went to Dustin's, we had a crazy event go down. I'm not going to use names, so hopefully you can follow who is who. We were over at Mama Reyes' house helping her out with some yard work, painting, and other stuff that she needed. One of the ladies in the branch who lives just up the road came over and was hanging out for a bit with Mama while we worked. She eventually left, and like 15 minutes later, Mama Reyes gets a call from her that sounded serious. So all 3 of us ran up the road in the freezing cold to see what we could to to help out. We soon were briefed on the situation: the husband of the house, another member in the branch, had basically overdosed on pain medication and sleeping pills. He wasn't in horrible shape (still breathing fine, and somewhat conscious), but he was totally out of it. We thought about calling an ambulance, but he was able to stand with our help, so we just shuffled him out to the car and let Mama Reyes and his wife drive him to the ER. We ran back to Mama's house, grabbed our car, and drove to the hospital to make sure everything was alright, and then we left for a couple of hours. Later they called and asked us to come back. We didn't really want to, because if he was conscious enough to recognize us it would be really embarrassing for him. But we went anyway, and he seemed to be doing okay. The doctors said that it wasn't too bad, he just needed to sleep it off and probably stay there over night. We talked with him for a bit (he was mostly coherent at this point) and we were able to give him a blessing. That was definitely not the day that I had envisioned when I woke up in the morning, but I'm glad that we were able to be of assistance and help out in the way that we did.
That's all the crazy I have for this week.
For Christmas, Mom sent me the book "Believing Christ" by Stephen E. Robinson, which I finished on Sunday. It was a great book, and one that I need to read again sometime. I encourage all of you to look into reading it as well. Something that was discussed in the book was how there are so many Latter-Day Saints who have a testimony or an understanding of many honorable things in the Church: tithing, auxiliary programs, Relief Society, service, etc. These are all good things, yet we all too often lack a basic understanding of the most important doctrines: justification; the necessity of faith, works, and grace; the Atonement; and others. It is a great book that helped boost my understanding of each of these important principles.
I want you all to know that I have a testimony of the Book of Mormon. I recently finished reading 3 Nephi, in which the Savior visits his "other sheep" in the Americas. He so simply and profoundly puts forth His Gospel, in words that are hard to be misunderstood. I love the Book of Mormon, and the doctrines that it contains. This week President Sainsbury in his weekly letter invited all of us missionaries to read the whole Book of Mormon in the next 3 months, and then to repeat that goal every three months for the rest of our mission. I'm excited for the challenge, and if any of you are up to it, I would invite you to participate. I will say this: whether or not you read the whole Book in three months, I hope that you at least read some every day. There is power in it that cannot be found anywhere else.
I'm so glad that I am a missionary. I love doing what we do. I'm so thankful for your love, support, and prayers. I'm so glad that I was able to call on Christmas. That was my best present (except maybe the Alabama hoodie haha). I love all of you, and wish you all a belated Happy New Year!
Love,
Elder Beach
#RollTide
Crazy Alabama plant.
Always looking for opportunities to have a little fun.
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