Blessed with the Best

Well this week has been a lot a lot a lot of finding. Where there is a lot of finding, there are always some good stories!

Monday: We were just minding our own business at the Mission office when a member came in with his coworkers and asked Sister Erickson, the front desk sister if there were any missionaries nearby that could share a message with his co-worker.  They were just on their lunch break and he asked if he would like to stop in and hear a message about Christ, then can pick up some lunch on the way back!! It was really neat! This kid, his co worker, Charles had so much respect for this member and he knew how much his religion meant to him, he was he was happy to listen. Wow the spirit that the member brought in, as he testified was amazing. He told Charles after our message, “you will come to know for yourself the truthfulness of this church and of the Book of Mormon and then you must choose to either accept it and live in harmony with it or you can choose to deny it, but you will know if you read it and pray about it.  YOU WILL KNOW”. He proceeded to tell his conversion story, He joined the church in Germany when the church was very young there and he told of all he had to give up, all he changed, and how blessed he had been because of it, the pure happiness that comes from the gospel. It was really fun to be a part of!  I love when lessons fall into my lap and I have an opportunity to Share my Testimony! Later that night, we went and did service for an elderly women that we met while we were tracking earlier the week before!! She was so sweet and she just needed someone to talk with her.  We offered to help her plant flowers and she took us up on that one. We plan to go back this week. I’ll send some pictures of her.

Tuesday: was really a slow day we talked to all sorts of people but slow. Nothing really stood out.

 Wednesday: We were running around with heads chopped off!  From district meeting to lunch with a sweet member to studies and then service at a soup kitchen and MCM. Service was by far my favorite part.  It always is. I love making people smile and service is the best way, by far, to put that smile on someone's face. This is our second time going to this soup kitchen and the other volunteers are now opening up a bit more, asking all sorts of questions. They can’t believe that we choose to do this with our lives and they are so impressed with us haha. These are good Christian people they all belong to the church where we do service, but they are in constant awe. They watch us very closely to see how we react and how we respond to different situations. For example, because it is at a church and the organization is Called Feed my Sheep they always start with a prayer. About halfway through the night, a volunteer came up and asked why we fold our arms during the prayer and what the meaning behind it was. Is that the only way we pray... Do you say recited prayers... and the questions kept coming it was really cool that they noticed little things like that!!

Thursday: as we were headed back to our car from knocking with not a whole lot of success, a lady was reading a book on her front porch. We kinda just gave a sort Hello and I asked if she was enjoying her book. She said yes and I thought that would be the end of it.  She did not seem too interested in talking but I was wrong, as always. She started asking all sorts of questions. We had a good long conversation, she said she had to get going and said “how about you girls leave me with that pamphlet you are teaching me from and give me one for my daughter and you come back next week to teach us more.”  That doesn't happen all that often!!  We ran from there to a temple tour with Salma's Family and  and her older brother!!  I'm not sure what I have said about him but he's a really cool guy and really Catholic which is great but we have some intense conversations about the gospel.  It's been a hoot for me. So I was super stoked to give him a temple tour. It was all going great.  We planned the tour more geared to Salma but that didn't last long.  It got deep pretty fast, and I didn't know what to do. I wanted Bart (Salma's brother) to have all his questions answered and I wanted to back them up with scripture, but it was way over Salma’s head and that was the real reason we were there, so I just kept saying a little prayer for guidance and help. The lesson was pretty much over and I could tell that Salma was lost. I was feeling sad that I missed a great opportunity to help her grow and to create a spiritual experience for her. At the end of the tour, they are able to go and sit and ponder what has been talked about and just to feel the spirit. Well we sent them all to do that and about 4 minutes in, a temple worker started to talk to Salmas mom and dad and Bart so it gave us a perfect opportunity to take Salma to the waiting room by the baptistery and we had a little heart to heart!! I shared with her my love for the temple and how I gained a testimony of it at a young age just like her.  It was super tender and for a split moment in saw Salma in white and with that image came tears. She smiled and said I'm so excited to go to the temple when I turn 18.  I'm so excited!!! I love this girl so much!!!

Friday: we were at the library doing some studies and as we were leaving this wonderful African women stopped us and asked us all about our ministry. She just moved here and has been seeking for a church and she went on and on about how she loved what we were doing and she wished that she had our same calling. Super sweet woman!  She got our number and asked if she could contact us!! The next text stated, “hello Jesus children! Could we meet up?” haha love it. That was a first! 

Saturday:  We started off the day with a killer workout!! Let's just say I couldn’t move on Sunday!! Then we did some service with some of our members… love it!! I love getting my hands dirty!! We did quite a bit of lawn work and had a nice lunch!! After that it was a tough day for me!  It was a long hot day!!  I thought I was going to lay down and die!!  It was so sticky hot and I was not having it!  We made it through, thankfully.

Sunday was even hotter than Saturday!! As we were finding we knocked on a door and the women let us right in.  She was so happy to see us, which is very unusual.  I thought maybe she was a less active member of some sort. But no, come to find out she had talked with the missionaries on the train but she had to get off before anyone could get her info and she had always wanted to learn more so she pulled us up a seat and we had a great restoration lesson.  She kept saying, this makes so much sense!! (with the enthusiasm that only black people have) It was a great lesson!! She picked up on things so quickly and made so many connections!! It was a great lesson!! We're going back this week to see her. Fingers crossed that she read and is even more interested in the next lesson! She has the cutest boy also!! Love it!!

Well as it going to be Father's Day this week.  I just want to thank all the fatherly figures in my life. But most of all for my dad!! I love him so much and I'm so grateful I was blessed enough to be one of his daughters! Words cannot express the feeling of gratitude I have for my dad and the hard work he puts in on my behalf and for my family. Anyone who knows him, knows what an amazing person he is!! So grateful I've been blessed with the best!! I love you dad and I miss you so much!! I can't wait to give you a great big old hug here in a few weeks thank you for setting such a great example for me and loving me enough to expect great things and for helping me grow into the person I am today!! Love Pete!!


Well thanks for all you guys do in my behalf I hope you have a great week!
Keep smilin
Sister Kendrick