The Golden Letter!

Do you want the good news or bad news first?

Ok- bad news, I like to end on a good note. Ha ha. So, bad news is this- remember that guy who was meeting with us and we read Alma the Younger with him and he was so excited and set a baptismal date? Ya, well he dropped us hardcore this past week... Man, sometimes I just want to give Satan a good 1-2, ya know? He told us that he didn't think church was important and that "Jesus would be ok if I didn't go to church..." And I thought, ya that may be true, but it is a commandment that we keep the sabbath day holy. He even told us prior to dropping us that he enjoyed going to church and that if that was all he did the entire week, it was worth it. That's why I know church isn't really what's keeping him from baptism. But, I can't force him to do anything, and I know he has felt the spirit as we've taught him. He knows the difference in his life that he has felt as he has met with us almost weekly. This man comes from a pretty rough background though and has made so many changes already, I'm just grateful that we were able to plant that seed in his heart and help him see how this Gospel can change him for the good forever. He will remember meeting with us, and he will never be able to deny the spirit he felt. One day he will be baptized. I'm not worried in the slightest, although I will miss teaching him.

Ok- AWESOME NEWS! Well at least to me it's pretty exciting.... So I don't know if I wrote about this experience, but about 2 weeks ago there was a non-member couple from Oklahoma that came through the Visitor's Center, and they were just super amazing. I spent at least 2 hours with them sharing stories, and teaching them about the Gospel. They were just the sweetest people in the world and agreed to read the Book of Mormon. Well, I don't know why, but as I wrote my testimony in that Book of Mormon I felt inspired to write my address in the book- so I did. Long story short, yesterday I got a letter from that very couple! You have no idea how excited I was. That letter was like gold in my hands. It's every sister missionary's dream to get a letter from a tour they take through, especially ones that are not familiar with the church. So in this letter he expressed his feelings about how much he and his wife enjoyed the tour and that they were so grateful that they were able to meet me. They told me that the minister of their church had just passed away at 50 yrs old and how hard this was for them. (They are very much into their church and close to the minister, which is awesome, so I can only imagine how hard this must be for them). He then went on to say that he had been reading from the Book of Mormon and told me about how he had learned to make wise choices in his life because of the experiences he had in his own family, and that he saw that I had chosen to do the same. By the end of the letter he had said many nice, wonderful things, but the greatest part was when he said, "P.S.- Because of our visit with you, it has helped me a lot with the passing of our minister." Man, I just wanted to cry I was so grateful for that letter! I can't wait to write them back! The church really is true, it does bless lives. It is a constant foundation in this time of peril and tribulation.

This week has just been full of stories and experiences, but that one was the cherry on top for me. I am learning so much, it's insane. Something I've been thinking a lot about this past week is how important it is to just give, and to give willingly. If we're not willing to give of ourselves, or our talents, or to serve those around us, we have nothing. Truly, we don't. We are so unhappy and miserable when we're always worried about "me" and what's in it for me. Some people can't see how if they just give, they will be sooooooooo much happier. And I can say this, because it's something I had to learn at the beginning of my mission, and am still learning. I do have my days where I'm in the "depths of despair.." and I just want to curl up in a ball and lay in bed. But then I remember this quote by Elder Holland, "Don't you dare ask for your mission to be easy. Don't you dare. Salvation is NOT a cheap experience." And so I'm rebuked and try to change my attitude. Ha ha. Anyways- I love you all. Thanks for your letters. It's helped me through some challenging times this past week. I love this work, even on it's hard days. 

This is God's work. Fight the good fight! 

Love, Sister Conrow :)