I don't think I have ever faced MORE opposition in my entire mission thus far.
Guess that means something big is about to happen in Trencin :D
So many things happened this week. We have an investigator right now and I love Him SOOOOOO MUCH :) He is so great. Tuesday we called him to invite Him to church and he told us he wasn't ready to come. Then friday he called us and said "what time is church?!?!"
WHAT
so then he came sunday. Not only did he come... wait for it wait for it... but in a white shirt and tie and slacks and he sang the hymns and wanted a liahonna and and and and had read in the Book of Mormon. WHAT WHAT WHAT :) DANG! So cool. We've only taught him twice so far but I have high high hopes for Him. We want to start teaching his wife and his son.
We had the sisters from Uherske Hradiste come on exchanges this week. Sister Huggard and I had some beautiful discussions about the Savior. I learn a lot from her. I think she and I are meant to play a big role in each other's lifes somehow. (since we've known each other since we were 13) and we keep getting put together on exchanges. She taught me a lot about the power of a pure missionary. I want to be a pure missionary. I want to be sooo squeekly clean that the spirit just pours out of every fiber of my being. So this week I am really trying to forget myself and focus focus focus on living the gospel of jesus christ.
Tuesday we had a practice for the koncert with the elders and sisters from Zilina. We are doing a combined koncert. We also had interviews with president. President McConkie is a powerful example to me of a righteous priesthood holder. I have never met some one quite as powerful and bold as him.It will be interesting to see what happens in this mission over the next couple years.
We also did a singing display. Had one of the most beautiful contacts on my mission. A young girl about 19. We spoke for a long time. She looked so sad. Contacted her. Brightened up. Was sooooo happy just to talk to some one. Why, as people, do we become sooo hard? We sit on a bus, and don't talk to the person sitting next to us. We stand in line at the store, and don't make eye contact with the cashier or ask how they're doing? The other day at the bus stop I just started talking to the woman next to me about her son who was running around. Immediately, 3 other people around us joined the discussion. It was almost like there was a huge relief of "finally, some one intiated the coversation so that we can have natural human interaction". We should be more open.
But anyway back to that contact. She thanked me for listening to her. I tried soo hard to listen to the spirit. She spoke of how desperately she is trying to live good standards, but how hard it is with her friends in high school. How she doesnt have a youth group. She was shocked to find out how "normal"I was. That I was a theologian, or went to church school. Rather, just a christian girl on a mission proclaiming my faith and loving God. I think that God really loves working through small and simple means.
We had all types of things that happened this week. Getting stuck at the church building, being rescued by our elders, having our investigator offer us a washing machine haha but coming to church!!, traveling out to dubnica and getting lost, meeting families there, serving at the homeless shelter still, and as always trying to work hard!
Yesterday night Sister Belibi Miny and I were speaking about the Book of Mormon and how we can receive a spiritual witness of it's truthfulness. We spoke of how we come to know something is true by living it. I believe there is truth in that statement. Alma encouraged the zoramites to experiment upon the word because they "couldn't know of a suret at first". We should be patient and trust in the Lord's timing. It is a joyful process to know the truth. To come to know righteousness. We don't have to bee educated experts or scholars to know of the truth of God. Anyone can know. If our faith was to be based on archaeological evidences, facts and findings, god would cease to be god. What about the average person who never researches in depth about the bible or book of mormon? If their faith was depedant upon fact, few would come to know the bible or book of mormon as the word of God. No, rather a spiritual witness must come by spiritual means. It cannot be learned by simply cramming and passing bubble sheet tests. We must not only learn in our minds, but also in our hearts. Faith is a way of knowing reality. C.S. Lewis once spoke of Jesus Christ being the only "true "realist"
In art I always learned that the real talent comes not in the creation of masterpiece, but rather learning to see the end result from before its beginning. To see the big picture - therein lies something divine. True believers will always be challenged by those who refuse to see said one of my professors (robert millet) when I was at BYU. How often do the scriptures speak of being spirutally blind or for the need to arouse our faculties? I believe our bodies are divinely given for the purpose of learning and living the gospel of Jesus Christ. May we all have the eyes of faith! God will always require us to exercise faith and belief in things hoped for; in the evidences of things not seen.
I love you all.
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