hi everybody!
So this week had its ups and downs. We didn't get to teach any lessons to investigators this week. However, we got to teach 6 RCLA (Recent Convert or Less Active) lessons! We also had a VERY good contacting ratio. Our ratio was 0.6/1.9. The ratio is Future investigators/Invitations to Learn. So basically out of all the people that we invited to learn about the gospel, about 30% of them became future investigators and agreed to learn more. Makes me soooo happy! but unfortunately the appointments fell through but we're still trying. We asked them when would be a good time to come again and one of them said "come on the most holy day. Sunday!" That's a good sign I'm assuming! haha
So here were the lessons this week. First we taught Sister Briggs last Wednesday about tithing and fast offerings. She committed to live it and she is progressing closer to living the Word of Wisdom fully. Shes given up coffee and now its all just getting her off the nicotine gum. SHes cut down SO MUCH on the gum and we are proud of her and the changes that she has made in her life. Later that day, we had dinner with the Trader family. They come to church pretty frequently now but they are just getting back to full activity. Brother Trader actually served his mission in the MMM as well! pretty cool! They are a great family. Last Thursday, we came into contact with a LA member named Sarah Gutierrez and she is WAY SOLID! she knows the church is true and wants to come back soon but she is scared to do it. She was baptized in 1997 i think and was sealed in the temple in 1999. But in 2000 she went through a nasty divorce and took offense to that against the Church. but looking back she realizes that it wasn't the Church's fault. She now has 2 kids and is married to a non member. But she does want to come back to church. Thats huge. We taught the wonderful Rodriguez Family just last Friday about the gospel of Jesus Christ and how it is the "Road of Life." They also came to church again so i have a great feeling that they were serious about saying that they will now regularly come to church. Im so happy for them!!! I love that family so much! Last Saturday we found a less active member named Gloria Paulson along with her daughter, Sister Sutten, and she has a VERY hard time with hearing but loves the missionaries. She is a convert in 1972 along with her family. We just shared a spiritual thought but the Spirit was so strong! we talked about How our Heavenly Father usually answers our prayers through other people. Sister Sutten got emotional and actually came to church this last Sunday. The only reason that they are less active is because Gloria cant really hear anything at Sacrament meeting. We are trying to resolve that though so that she can enjoy the blessings of coming to church. We got to teach a gospel principles class during 2nd hour at church to RCLAs and we taught about keeping the Sabbath day holy and the blessings that come from it. It was a great lesson. They really enjoyed it.
Those were our lessons this week but now for this upcoming week: we have 3 lessons set up on Tuesday (All investigators), 2 on Wednesday (All investigators), 2 on Thursday (1 Recent Convert and 1 investigator), and 2 on Friday (all Less Active member lessons) with possibly more on the way. Plus we are really pushing general conference with investigators. With all these lessons and general conference this weekend, this is probably going to be one of the busiest weeks on my mission yet but im very excited to teach these lessons and hear the words of our beloved prophet, President Monson.
I found a video on mormon.org this last week that really touched me and id like to share that with you all. President Hinckley told us a story one time in general conference that his father once told him.
"An older boy and his young companion were walking along a road which led through a field. They saw an old coat and a badly worn pair of men’s shoes by the roadside, and in the distance they saw the owner working in the field. The younger boy suggested that they hide the shoes, conceal themselves, and watch the perplexity on the owner’s face when he returned. The older boy … thought that would not be so good. He said the owner must be a very poor man. So, after talking the matter over, at his suggestion, they concluded to try another experiment. Instead of hiding the shoes, they would put a silver dollar in each one and … see what the owner did when he discovered the money. So they did that. Pretty soon the man returned from the field, put on his coat, slipped one foot into a shoe, felt something hard, took it out and found a silver dollar. Wonder and surprise [shone] upon his face. He looked at the dollar again and again, turned around and could see nobody, then proceeded to put on the other shoe; when to his great surprise he found another dollar. His feelings overcame him. … He knelt down and offered aloud a prayer of thanksgiving, in which he spoke of his wife being sick and helpless and his children without bread. … He fervently thanked the Lord for this bounty from unknown hands and evoked the blessing of heaven upon those who gave him this needed help. The boys remained [hidden] until he had gone. They had been touched by his prayer and felt something warm within their hearts. As they left to walk down the road, one said to the other, 'Don’t you have a good feeling?'"
That story really touched me because the Lord knew this mans needs and his prayers. But he answered his prayers not by money magically growing from a tree in his yard or something but by a small act of kindness from these boys that had a huge impact on this mas life. It is my prayer that we may doing something kind for someone that is having a hard time. Search for these opportunities. A lot of times in our lives we become so preoccupied with our own lives. We become caught up in the thick of thin things. Let us go out of our way and do something for someone who may have lost a loved one, who is dealing with marital problems or spiritually lost children, dealing with the bitterness of disease or illness, dealing with sorrow, dealing with loneliness, or any kind of suffering. We will feel that warm feeling in our hearts as we help someone who is more weary than ourselves. We ourselves will be made stronger. Do as the Lord did. Help those in need. Fulfill what really matters most in life. I promise each of you that if you that if you do this, you will feel this good feeling in your heart, you will be stripped of pride and bitterness and filled with love and charity, and you will experience the joys of serving those who the Lord would have you to serve. This is my testimony and i share it with you, in the name of our Lord and our Savior, even Jesus Christ. Amen
Love Elder Mower
Monday, September 26, 2011
Surprise Photo #4
Here is a picture of Elder Mower and his new companion Elder Black! It makes my day to get these pictures!!!
Monday, September 19, 2011
Elder Mower Letter #16
Hello from Eagan, MN!
Something funny happened yesterday so ill share that: We knocked on a future investigators door and a girl looks through the window (the window was open so we could hear her). Then she yells to a boy saying: "ITS THE FREAKING JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES! WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO!" Elder Black and I were laughing our heads off. Eventually she answered the door because she knew that we saw and heard her. We just shared a mormon.org card and invited her to check it out but that's about it. haha
So I'm not gonna lie, this week started off as one of the roughest weeks of my mission.
Mary Hellan dropped us. She was our most solid investigator but she had a huge problem with us not believing in transubstantiation. It didn't make sense because she said herself that she believes that Joseph Smith was a prophet. So the Book of Mormon shouldn't be a problem with her. She also didn't like that we don't use wine for the blood of Christ. She quoted that even the Book of Mormon said wine. So her question really is: "Was Joseph Smith a total fraud or was he a true prophet inspired from God?" If she believes he was a prophet, then i really don't know how else to help her. I do think that the only reason that she met with the missionaries is because she was more attached to the missionaries that started teaching her than to the gospel. Elder Baker (my last companion) was one of those elders that started teaching her. A week after he left, she dropped us. Its ok though because she said that she will still read and pray about the Book of Mormon. She told us that she will call us if she has any questions. a definite seed was planted.
We BARELY had any lessons this week. Most of our lessons fell through. It was really testing my faith. I felt like an unsuccessful missionary. Elder Black felt the same way.
We knew that we had to over come that obstacle. So for companionship study all this week, we really focused on attaining the attributes of a successful missionary. We re-evaluated our efforts and worked even harder. Then after our hard work came THE GREATEST MIRACLES I've seen on my mission.
We received a referral on Friday. Best referral yet! She flat out said that she wants to become a Mormon!!! that made me soooo happy!!! Her name is Jayme! The only problem is that she wouldn't give us her address because her mom is SUPER ANTI against the church and she doesn't want us to have to deal with that. We know that she lives in Rosemount but we only cover part of Rosemount so we don't quite know if she is in our area but there is a good chance that she is. We haven't contacted her yet but we know that she is SO READY to receive the gospel.
Elder Black and I tried new finding procedures this week. We completely went through our area book and we found 2 former investigators that said that we could come back and teach them!One of them actually told us why she stopped investigating the church (she felt rushed). So we promised her that we would take it slow with her. Now we know her needs and that is HUGE! If you see the missionaries and they are having trouble finding people, then ask them when the last time was that they checked their area book. Elder Hinckley (president Hinckleys son) came to the mission once and left us a promise that if we stop by our former investigators and do 10 x 10 tracting (10 houses left and 10 right from the former investigators house) that we WILL find someone to baptize. Awesome promise right there because it is SO TRUE!
What i am about to share is an experience that completely changed my perspective on families and even changed my mission. Because it is such a touching experience for me, i will go ahead and leave this lesson as my spiritual thought. We were able to teach the Rodriguez Family (LA) just last Friday. The Rodriguez family is sooooo AWESOME! They have 3 kids Felix Jr. (14), Calvin (11), Cassie (8). We taught them a lot about the Restoration to make sure if they know that the Church is true. When we were teaching about the Holy Ghost, we asked them if they had ever felt the Holy Ghost in their lives and invited them to share that experience. Sister Rodriguez shared that it was an amazing feeling and would do ANYTHING to get that feeling back. Brother Rodriguez shared that whenever he was on an airplane that was very shaky, he was afraid but when he would read the Book of Mormon on the plane, the fear would leave him and he wouldn't even notice the plane shaking. Their youngest daughter, Cassie, is 8 and always bugs them about her getting baptized by her dad. So Brother Rodriguez wants to receive the Melchizedek Priesthood. He wants to baptize Cassie. The family made a SOLID commitment to come to church. THEY CAME!!! But here was the highlight of that lesson: Brother Rodriguez said: "I feel very close to my family, but i still feel that there is an emptiness in my home." He then asked us to bless his home. He basically asked us to dedicate his home. We said we would do it Sunday, which was yesterday. Elder Black dedicated their home and it was a powerful prayer. We talked about the prayer. Brother Rodriguez then shared a wonderful experience that he had. He had a dream not too long ago. Here is his dream: "He and his family were having some struggles and felt that emptiness in their home (the one that i just talked about). He asked his bishop to dedicate their home. He didn't do it because the bishop said that he had the authority. But Brother Rodriguez felt inadequate and unready, so it didn't happen." Brother Rodriguez started crying as he expressed his desire to get the Priesthood to bless the lives of his family. He said that this dream was a wake up call for him because he didn't feel good enough to get the Priesthood. That hurt him because he really knows that he needs it and that his family needs it. He wants the blessings of the Priesthood SO BAD for his family. But he expressed his firm commitment to work towards receiving the Priesthood. After that Sister Rodriguez started crying. Then even I started crying!!! That was the only time so far that i had ever cried in a real lesson on my mission. The Spirit really touched me that day and I truly felt the love within this amazing family. They also said that from now on, they will be attending church regularly and are making it a goal to be sealed in the temple! That touched me MORE THAN ANYTHING in my life. That opened me to to realize how much a father really loves his wife and children. I developed such a great love for this family. It also helped me better understand our Heavenly Father's love for His children. It really is something beautiful. I love this family sooooooo much! This was without a doubt the happiest moment of my mission so far and is one of my biggest mission highlights. The Spirit pretty much made my heart explode!!! (in a great way).
Keep on praying for the missionaries throughout the world! they are doing amazing things in the Lord's behalf. Thank you for all you do and may the Lord always be with you.
Love Elder Mower
Something funny happened yesterday so ill share that: We knocked on a future investigators door and a girl looks through the window (the window was open so we could hear her). Then she yells to a boy saying: "ITS THE FREAKING JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES! WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO!" Elder Black and I were laughing our heads off. Eventually she answered the door because she knew that we saw and heard her. We just shared a mormon.org card and invited her to check it out but that's about it. haha
So I'm not gonna lie, this week started off as one of the roughest weeks of my mission.
Mary Hellan dropped us. She was our most solid investigator but she had a huge problem with us not believing in transubstantiation. It didn't make sense because she said herself that she believes that Joseph Smith was a prophet. So the Book of Mormon shouldn't be a problem with her. She also didn't like that we don't use wine for the blood of Christ. She quoted that even the Book of Mormon said wine. So her question really is: "Was Joseph Smith a total fraud or was he a true prophet inspired from God?" If she believes he was a prophet, then i really don't know how else to help her. I do think that the only reason that she met with the missionaries is because she was more attached to the missionaries that started teaching her than to the gospel. Elder Baker (my last companion) was one of those elders that started teaching her. A week after he left, she dropped us. Its ok though because she said that she will still read and pray about the Book of Mormon. She told us that she will call us if she has any questions. a definite seed was planted.
We BARELY had any lessons this week. Most of our lessons fell through. It was really testing my faith. I felt like an unsuccessful missionary. Elder Black felt the same way.
We knew that we had to over come that obstacle. So for companionship study all this week, we really focused on attaining the attributes of a successful missionary. We re-evaluated our efforts and worked even harder. Then after our hard work came THE GREATEST MIRACLES I've seen on my mission.
We received a referral on Friday. Best referral yet! She flat out said that she wants to become a Mormon!!! that made me soooo happy!!! Her name is Jayme! The only problem is that she wouldn't give us her address because her mom is SUPER ANTI against the church and she doesn't want us to have to deal with that. We know that she lives in Rosemount but we only cover part of Rosemount so we don't quite know if she is in our area but there is a good chance that she is. We haven't contacted her yet but we know that she is SO READY to receive the gospel.
Elder Black and I tried new finding procedures this week. We completely went through our area book and we found 2 former investigators that said that we could come back and teach them!One of them actually told us why she stopped investigating the church (she felt rushed). So we promised her that we would take it slow with her. Now we know her needs and that is HUGE! If you see the missionaries and they are having trouble finding people, then ask them when the last time was that they checked their area book. Elder Hinckley (president Hinckleys son) came to the mission once and left us a promise that if we stop by our former investigators and do 10 x 10 tracting (10 houses left and 10 right from the former investigators house) that we WILL find someone to baptize. Awesome promise right there because it is SO TRUE!
What i am about to share is an experience that completely changed my perspective on families and even changed my mission. Because it is such a touching experience for me, i will go ahead and leave this lesson as my spiritual thought. We were able to teach the Rodriguez Family (LA) just last Friday. The Rodriguez family is sooooo AWESOME! They have 3 kids Felix Jr. (14), Calvin (11), Cassie (8). We taught them a lot about the Restoration to make sure if they know that the Church is true. When we were teaching about the Holy Ghost, we asked them if they had ever felt the Holy Ghost in their lives and invited them to share that experience. Sister Rodriguez shared that it was an amazing feeling and would do ANYTHING to get that feeling back. Brother Rodriguez shared that whenever he was on an airplane that was very shaky, he was afraid but when he would read the Book of Mormon on the plane, the fear would leave him and he wouldn't even notice the plane shaking. Their youngest daughter, Cassie, is 8 and always bugs them about her getting baptized by her dad. So Brother Rodriguez wants to receive the Melchizedek Priesthood. He wants to baptize Cassie. The family made a SOLID commitment to come to church. THEY CAME!!! But here was the highlight of that lesson: Brother Rodriguez said: "I feel very close to my family, but i still feel that there is an emptiness in my home." He then asked us to bless his home. He basically asked us to dedicate his home. We said we would do it Sunday, which was yesterday. Elder Black dedicated their home and it was a powerful prayer. We talked about the prayer. Brother Rodriguez then shared a wonderful experience that he had. He had a dream not too long ago. Here is his dream: "He and his family were having some struggles and felt that emptiness in their home (the one that i just talked about). He asked his bishop to dedicate their home. He didn't do it because the bishop said that he had the authority. But Brother Rodriguez felt inadequate and unready, so it didn't happen." Brother Rodriguez started crying as he expressed his desire to get the Priesthood to bless the lives of his family. He said that this dream was a wake up call for him because he didn't feel good enough to get the Priesthood. That hurt him because he really knows that he needs it and that his family needs it. He wants the blessings of the Priesthood SO BAD for his family. But he expressed his firm commitment to work towards receiving the Priesthood. After that Sister Rodriguez started crying. Then even I started crying!!! That was the only time so far that i had ever cried in a real lesson on my mission. The Spirit really touched me that day and I truly felt the love within this amazing family. They also said that from now on, they will be attending church regularly and are making it a goal to be sealed in the temple! That touched me MORE THAN ANYTHING in my life. That opened me to to realize how much a father really loves his wife and children. I developed such a great love for this family. It also helped me better understand our Heavenly Father's love for His children. It really is something beautiful. I love this family sooooooo much! This was without a doubt the happiest moment of my mission so far and is one of my biggest mission highlights. The Spirit pretty much made my heart explode!!! (in a great way).
Keep on praying for the missionaries throughout the world! they are doing amazing things in the Lord's behalf. Thank you for all you do and may the Lord always be with you.
Love Elder Mower
Monday, September 12, 2011
Elder Mower Letter #15
Hello!
So school started this week in Eagan and Rosemount so NOBODY is available for us. So it was a LONG week of no success. :[ It was pretty lame but thats ok because winter is coming soon and hopefully people will immediately let us in to help us warm up (plenty of missionary opportunities there)!
So as you all may know, my companion, Elder Baker got transferred to Rochester in the 3rd singles ward there. My new companion is Elder Black. I mentioned that i heard that his snores are loud and sound like Darth Vader. That is correct. The first night he was here, i COULD NOT go to sleep. So i have been sleeping on our couch since Wednesday but that will end today because Elder Black said that he would buy me some earplugs. He has been out for almost a year. He's 20 years old. He is VERY tall (6 feet 6 inches). He LOVES Taco Bell and Mountain Dew. He was in Marching Band in High School. Because last transfer was only 5 weeks, this transfer will last for 7 weeks. It'll be a good 7 weeks.
So like i said, school just started here and nobody was free for us. We called everybody but everything fell through. But we were able to get 2 lessons this week and form a SOLID ward mission plan. Last tuesday was our 2 lessons. First we taught Sister Briggs (LA) about the word of wisdom. We had 2 sisters from Relief Society come and help us as well. She drinks coffee and chews A LOT of nicotine gum. It was a good lesson and she committed to live the WOW. We call every night to see how she is doing with it. She has been saying that it has been going "just alright." A turning point was just yesterday though! At church, we sat next to her and she said that shes officially quit coffee as of yesterday. We were soooo happy to hear that. Now we just need to focus on eliminating the gum. She is sooooo awesome. After that lesson, we taught Mary Hellan Boodrum (I) with another member about the Restoration and we were very aggressive with the Book of Mormon. She did say that she believes (not KNOWS) that Joseph Smith was a prophet. She said that she had no problem changing things to join our religion except for one problem. She believes in the holy sacrifice of the mass (its where one believes that the bread and wine of the sacrament is LITERALLY turned into the flesh and blood of Christ). She strongly believes it. She told us that it is the only thing that is holding her back. We strongly bore testimony that the Book of Mormon can solve this complex problem by a simple answer from the Holy Ghost. We told her that if the BOM is true, then the way that we administer the sacrament is true and if Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God, then he restored the true way to administer the Sacrament. We extended a baptismal invitation but she said that she needed to find our if the BOM is true first. and she agreed to be baptized if she found out that these things were true. We were extremely bold with her but we believe that by being this bold, we basically got out of the "comparing religions" phase. We established our purpose with her, she does keep her commitments, and she loves the church. So now we just need to help her know how she can find out if the BOM is true. You see how important the BOM really is? its not just another book of scripture that we know is true but it is literally what holds the gospel together. Its the determining factor of ALL investigators. It all matters on the BOM. Every question eventually boils down to: "Is the BOM true or is it not?" This all weighs on the BOM. Speaking of the BOM, it is now the central focus on our ward mission plan. Now the ward mission leader, his assistant, and Elder Black and I go to the auxiliaries to commit a few of them each week to give out a BOM and report back to us. The assistant ward mission leader also found a 23 questions of the BOM compilation (its alot like the questions of the soul). It gives a chapter or even just a scripture to read under that question. Elder Black and I went to Relief Society and 2 sisters took a BOM as well as the 23 questions paper. We pray that this new effort will improve our finding results.
So here is my spiritual thought for the week. Before i say this, i apologize for how long it is but it is such a powerful testimony of the BOM. It is Elder Hollands testimony of the Book of Mormon in his talk titled "Safety For The Soul." He says: "May I refer to a modern “last days” testimony? When Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum started for Carthage to face what they knew would be an imminent martyrdom, Hyrum read these words to comfort the heart of his brother: 'Thou hast been faithful; wherefore … thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father.' 'And now I, Moroni, bid farewell … until we shall meet before the judgment-seat of Christ.” A few short verses from the 12th chapter of Ether in the Book of Mormon. Before closing the book, Hyrum turned down the corner of the page from which he had read, marking it as part of the everlasting testimony for which these two brothers were about to die. I hold in my hand that book, the very copy from which Hyrum read, the same corner of the page turned down, still visible. Later, when actually incarcerated in the jail, Joseph the Prophet turned to the guards who held him captive and bore a powerful testimony of the divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon. Shortly thereafter pistol and ball would take the lives of these two testators. As one of a thousand elements of my own testimony of the divinity of the Book of Mormon, I submit this as yet one more evidence of its truthfulness. In this their greatest—and last—hour of need, I ask you: would these men blaspheme before God by continuing to fix their lives, their honor, and their own search for eternal salvation on a book (and by implication a church and a ministry) they had fictitiously created out of whole cloth? Never mind that their wives are about to be widows and their children fatherless. Never mind that their little band of followers will yet be “houseless, friendless and homeless” and that their children will leave footprints of blood across frozen rivers and an untamed prairie floor. Never mind that legions will die and other legions live declaring in the four quarters of this earth that they know the Book of Mormon and the Church which espouses it to be true. Disregard all of that, and tell me whether in this hour of death these two men would enter the presence of their Eternal Judge quoting from and finding solace in a book which, if not the very word of God, would brand them as imposters and charlatans until the end of time? They would not do that! They were willing to die rather than deny the divine origin and the eternal truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. For 179 years this book has been examined and attacked, denied and deconstructed, targeted and torn apart like perhaps no other book in modern religious history—perhaps like no other book in any religious history. And still it stands. Failed theories about its origins have been born and parroted and have died...None of these frankly pathetic answers for this book has ever withstood examination because there is no other answer than the one Joseph gave as its young unlearned translator. In this I stand with my own great-grandfather, who said simply enough, 'No wicked man could write such a book as this; and no good man would write it, unless it were true and he were commanded of God to do so.'" A video of his testimony is also on mormon.org. I know that the BOM is true and that it is the concrete of our faith in Christ. It is the most reliable written source that gives me simple and powerful answers to questions that may be difficult to answer. If you haven't received that testimony of the Book of Mormon, then I encourage you, like Moroni did, to get on your knees after reading it and plead with your Heavenly Father to know if it is true or not. If you do so with a humble heart and are willing to use this witness to defend this book, then i PROMISE that you will receive the unshakable knowledge that this book is of God and that this is His kingdom established on earth, preceding the Second Coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Thank you for all you do and I know that this is the only true gospel of Jesus Christ.
Love Elder Mower
--
Heather
So school started this week in Eagan and Rosemount so NOBODY is available for us. So it was a LONG week of no success. :[ It was pretty lame but thats ok because winter is coming soon and hopefully people will immediately let us in to help us warm up (plenty of missionary opportunities there)!
So as you all may know, my companion, Elder Baker got transferred to Rochester in the 3rd singles ward there. My new companion is Elder Black. I mentioned that i heard that his snores are loud and sound like Darth Vader. That is correct. The first night he was here, i COULD NOT go to sleep. So i have been sleeping on our couch since Wednesday but that will end today because Elder Black said that he would buy me some earplugs. He has been out for almost a year. He's 20 years old. He is VERY tall (6 feet 6 inches). He LOVES Taco Bell and Mountain Dew. He was in Marching Band in High School. Because last transfer was only 5 weeks, this transfer will last for 7 weeks. It'll be a good 7 weeks.
So like i said, school just started here and nobody was free for us. We called everybody but everything fell through. But we were able to get 2 lessons this week and form a SOLID ward mission plan. Last tuesday was our 2 lessons. First we taught Sister Briggs (LA) about the word of wisdom. We had 2 sisters from Relief Society come and help us as well. She drinks coffee and chews A LOT of nicotine gum. It was a good lesson and she committed to live the WOW. We call every night to see how she is doing with it. She has been saying that it has been going "just alright." A turning point was just yesterday though! At church, we sat next to her and she said that shes officially quit coffee as of yesterday. We were soooo happy to hear that. Now we just need to focus on eliminating the gum. She is sooooo awesome. After that lesson, we taught Mary Hellan Boodrum (I) with another member about the Restoration and we were very aggressive with the Book of Mormon. She did say that she believes (not KNOWS) that Joseph Smith was a prophet. She said that she had no problem changing things to join our religion except for one problem. She believes in the holy sacrifice of the mass (its where one believes that the bread and wine of the sacrament is LITERALLY turned into the flesh and blood of Christ). She strongly believes it. She told us that it is the only thing that is holding her back. We strongly bore testimony that the Book of Mormon can solve this complex problem by a simple answer from the Holy Ghost. We told her that if the BOM is true, then the way that we administer the sacrament is true and if Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God, then he restored the true way to administer the Sacrament. We extended a baptismal invitation but she said that she needed to find our if the BOM is true first. and she agreed to be baptized if she found out that these things were true. We were extremely bold with her but we believe that by being this bold, we basically got out of the "comparing religions" phase. We established our purpose with her, she does keep her commitments, and she loves the church. So now we just need to help her know how she can find out if the BOM is true. You see how important the BOM really is? its not just another book of scripture that we know is true but it is literally what holds the gospel together. Its the determining factor of ALL investigators. It all matters on the BOM. Every question eventually boils down to: "Is the BOM true or is it not?" This all weighs on the BOM. Speaking of the BOM, it is now the central focus on our ward mission plan. Now the ward mission leader, his assistant, and Elder Black and I go to the auxiliaries to commit a few of them each week to give out a BOM and report back to us. The assistant ward mission leader also found a 23 questions of the BOM compilation (its alot like the questions of the soul). It gives a chapter or even just a scripture to read under that question. Elder Black and I went to Relief Society and 2 sisters took a BOM as well as the 23 questions paper. We pray that this new effort will improve our finding results.
So here is my spiritual thought for the week. Before i say this, i apologize for how long it is but it is such a powerful testimony of the BOM. It is Elder Hollands testimony of the Book of Mormon in his talk titled "Safety For The Soul." He says: "May I refer to a modern “last days” testimony? When Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum started for Carthage to face what they knew would be an imminent martyrdom, Hyrum read these words to comfort the heart of his brother: 'Thou hast been faithful; wherefore … thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father.' 'And now I, Moroni, bid farewell … until we shall meet before the judgment-seat of Christ.” A few short verses from the 12th chapter of Ether in the Book of Mormon. Before closing the book, Hyrum turned down the corner of the page from which he had read, marking it as part of the everlasting testimony for which these two brothers were about to die. I hold in my hand that book, the very copy from which Hyrum read, the same corner of the page turned down, still visible. Later, when actually incarcerated in the jail, Joseph the Prophet turned to the guards who held him captive and bore a powerful testimony of the divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon. Shortly thereafter pistol and ball would take the lives of these two testators. As one of a thousand elements of my own testimony of the divinity of the Book of Mormon, I submit this as yet one more evidence of its truthfulness. In this their greatest—and last—hour of need, I ask you: would these men blaspheme before God by continuing to fix their lives, their honor, and their own search for eternal salvation on a book (and by implication a church and a ministry) they had fictitiously created out of whole cloth? Never mind that their wives are about to be widows and their children fatherless. Never mind that their little band of followers will yet be “houseless, friendless and homeless” and that their children will leave footprints of blood across frozen rivers and an untamed prairie floor. Never mind that legions will die and other legions live declaring in the four quarters of this earth that they know the Book of Mormon and the Church which espouses it to be true. Disregard all of that, and tell me whether in this hour of death these two men would enter the presence of their Eternal Judge quoting from and finding solace in a book which, if not the very word of God, would brand them as imposters and charlatans until the end of time? They would not do that! They were willing to die rather than deny the divine origin and the eternal truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. For 179 years this book has been examined and attacked, denied and deconstructed, targeted and torn apart like perhaps no other book in modern religious history—perhaps like no other book in any religious history. And still it stands. Failed theories about its origins have been born and parroted and have died...None of these frankly pathetic answers for this book has ever withstood examination because there is no other answer than the one Joseph gave as its young unlearned translator. In this I stand with my own great-grandfather, who said simply enough, 'No wicked man could write such a book as this; and no good man would write it, unless it were true and he were commanded of God to do so.'" A video of his testimony is also on mormon.org. I know that the BOM is true and that it is the concrete of our faith in Christ. It is the most reliable written source that gives me simple and powerful answers to questions that may be difficult to answer. If you haven't received that testimony of the Book of Mormon, then I encourage you, like Moroni did, to get on your knees after reading it and plead with your Heavenly Father to know if it is true or not. If you do so with a humble heart and are willing to use this witness to defend this book, then i PROMISE that you will receive the unshakable knowledge that this book is of God and that this is His kingdom established on earth, preceding the Second Coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Thank you for all you do and I know that this is the only true gospel of Jesus Christ.
Love Elder Mower
--
Heather
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Elder Mower Letter #14
Hi everyone!
So transfer calls were just yesterday and after 9 months of being in Eagan, Elder Baker will be transferred to a singles ward in the Rochester zone. He was such an amazing companion who has taught me sooo many valuable lessons that i can apply both on my mission and for everything that i do for the rest of my life. He will be missed alot! my new companion will be Elder black. I only know a few things about him so far. I know that he is VERY tall (about 6'5), he snores sound like Darth Vader (i may need some earplugs. haha), and he is a good missionary. He is just reaching his year mark. I am excited to take over the Eagan area and learn more about leadership.
So here is the update of missionary work in Eagan: unfortunately none of our referrals have contacted us yet. We will keep on trying and I'll let you all know when we do. Our ward missionary efforts are thankfully improving. Although we only had 2 lessons this week, all of them were one with a member present. That makes me very happy! Elder Baker and I were working so hard to get the ward members excited about missionary work. Things with the ward mission leader are looking good because now we have a solid plan to update him with all of our missionary efforts. I couldn't be happier with the ward. There is always room for improvement though. We still need more missionaries. So wherever you are, ALWAYS look for those opportunities to preach the gospel to friends, family, co workers, etc. You may need to say something that they need to hear. I saw that in both of our lessons. We briefly taught Victor last Wednesday with a member. Like I said before he is unemployed and has been for 2 months. He is really struggling. He applied for a job and the interviews went very smooth and he thinks he did well. Instead, the employers said quite the opposite and said they are pursuing someone else. He was devastated. We showed him this video titled Hope Ya Know, We've Had a Hard Time (it is on http://mormon.org/videos/). The member now wants to play some NFL Madden with him and also help him find a job. Its a miracle! This member HAD to be there. It was inspired for him to be there. Last friday, we taught Monika and Ravi. Before one instance, they were very receptive and we actually brought 2 converts from Hinduism to help us out. Monika and Ravi has 2 kids. They are a Hindu family with beliefs that are VERY parallel to Christianity and with even our own faith. Unfortunately, they asked us the Churches standpoint on eating animals and that was tough to answer. Elder Baker responded: "well that's a very good question. I don't really know that Churches standpoint on this but I personally enjoy eating meat." Then Monika totally lost it and got emotional in defending animals. I think it is safe to say that she was VERY offended. Thankfully we had these 2 members with us because they understood her and they calmed her down. But we can meet with them again. We did commit them to come to church in a few weeks as they are busy for a while. They said that they would come. We found out last Thursday that Sister Briggs (LA) has word of wisdom issues. So we made an addiction recovery plan and set a temple date with her to go to the temple. But it needs to be approved by the bishop since she is a member. But we call her every night to see how she is doing now. She is making LOTS of progress. We are so proud of her and the long way she has come.
Here is my spiritual thought of the week. Just last Saturday we were tracting in the middle of nowhere and we came to this lady's house. She suffered from a stroke so she was barely able to speak to us clearly. I had no idea what she was saying at first. But I prayed for understanding of what she was saying to me. Next thing I knew, I was able to get a general idea of almost every sentence that she was saying. In 1 Corinthians 14:1-4, it reads: " Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy. For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries. But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort. He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church." Just because I am an English speaking missionary, I KNOW that i am still entitled to receive the gift of tongues whenever I need it to prophesy of Jesus Christ. I know that as we strive to testify of the truthfulness of the gospel, we can be entitled to all spiritual gifts of the Spirit to assist in the building of God's kingdom here on earth. Thank you so much for all you do! The church is ALWAYS true!
Love Elder Mower
So transfer calls were just yesterday and after 9 months of being in Eagan, Elder Baker will be transferred to a singles ward in the Rochester zone. He was such an amazing companion who has taught me sooo many valuable lessons that i can apply both on my mission and for everything that i do for the rest of my life. He will be missed alot! my new companion will be Elder black. I only know a few things about him so far. I know that he is VERY tall (about 6'5), he snores sound like Darth Vader (i may need some earplugs. haha), and he is a good missionary. He is just reaching his year mark. I am excited to take over the Eagan area and learn more about leadership.
So here is the update of missionary work in Eagan: unfortunately none of our referrals have contacted us yet. We will keep on trying and I'll let you all know when we do. Our ward missionary efforts are thankfully improving. Although we only had 2 lessons this week, all of them were one with a member present. That makes me very happy! Elder Baker and I were working so hard to get the ward members excited about missionary work. Things with the ward mission leader are looking good because now we have a solid plan to update him with all of our missionary efforts. I couldn't be happier with the ward. There is always room for improvement though. We still need more missionaries. So wherever you are, ALWAYS look for those opportunities to preach the gospel to friends, family, co workers, etc. You may need to say something that they need to hear. I saw that in both of our lessons. We briefly taught Victor last Wednesday with a member. Like I said before he is unemployed and has been for 2 months. He is really struggling. He applied for a job and the interviews went very smooth and he thinks he did well. Instead, the employers said quite the opposite and said they are pursuing someone else. He was devastated. We showed him this video titled Hope Ya Know, We've Had a Hard Time (it is on http://mormon.org/videos/). The member now wants to play some NFL Madden with him and also help him find a job. Its a miracle! This member HAD to be there. It was inspired for him to be there. Last friday, we taught Monika and Ravi. Before one instance, they were very receptive and we actually brought 2 converts from Hinduism to help us out. Monika and Ravi has 2 kids. They are a Hindu family with beliefs that are VERY parallel to Christianity and with even our own faith. Unfortunately, they asked us the Churches standpoint on eating animals and that was tough to answer. Elder Baker responded: "well that's a very good question. I don't really know that Churches standpoint on this but I personally enjoy eating meat." Then Monika totally lost it and got emotional in defending animals. I think it is safe to say that she was VERY offended. Thankfully we had these 2 members with us because they understood her and they calmed her down. But we can meet with them again. We did commit them to come to church in a few weeks as they are busy for a while. They said that they would come. We found out last Thursday that Sister Briggs (LA) has word of wisdom issues. So we made an addiction recovery plan and set a temple date with her to go to the temple. But it needs to be approved by the bishop since she is a member. But we call her every night to see how she is doing now. She is making LOTS of progress. We are so proud of her and the long way she has come.
Here is my spiritual thought of the week. Just last Saturday we were tracting in the middle of nowhere and we came to this lady's house. She suffered from a stroke so she was barely able to speak to us clearly. I had no idea what she was saying at first. But I prayed for understanding of what she was saying to me. Next thing I knew, I was able to get a general idea of almost every sentence that she was saying. In 1 Corinthians 14:1-4, it reads: " Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy. For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries. But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort. He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church." Just because I am an English speaking missionary, I KNOW that i am still entitled to receive the gift of tongues whenever I need it to prophesy of Jesus Christ. I know that as we strive to testify of the truthfulness of the gospel, we can be entitled to all spiritual gifts of the Spirit to assist in the building of God's kingdom here on earth. Thank you so much for all you do! The church is ALWAYS true!
Love Elder Mower
Monday, September 5, 2011
No letter but more Surprise Pictures!
So, I didn't get a letter today (Labor Day), but I figured since the library was closed. I did however get another surprise text from a Sister in Eagan Minnesota. I just love her dearly, and I have never met her. She has brightened my day so much, and taken pictures of my boy here and there and sent them to me. I am so grateful for her, and I'm guessing it is good practice for her since she has a few to send off on missions someday!!! These are pictures of a contest at the ward picnic in Eagan. They hammer a nail into the log, and I hear it gets pretty competitive. She tells me they do a lot of rounds and all the men participate. She assured me he will email tomorrow when the Library opens! Thanks again to my friend in Minnesota!
Elder Baker and Elder Mower with Brother Winspear from the Eagan Ward.
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