The area is very different from when I was last in it over a year ago. They've found so many new people and it's been exciting to see the growth that's happened and get to know them a bit. We've also found some people just in the past few days and it's just been so much fun!
I'll start with a miracle, then a tender mercy , and then move on to perhaps the most hilarious moment of my mission. Miracle: We went to visit a former investigator on Friday night (I'm actually the one who found her when I first got to the mission field). As we were walking up to her door, we passed a mother and her two daughters. We said hi, but were late for our appointment so we moved on. Turns out, they were walking to the same door - they're friends of hers, and they had come over at the same time for a visit. Well, we didn't want to take time to do a whole lesson, but we shared a spiritual thought - and, the mother, was incredibly interested. She took a Book of Mormon, gave us her number and address, and set up an appointment for us to come by Sunday night. But the miracle didn't stop there - not thirty minutes later, we got a set of texts from her saying how God had put us in her path and that she needed Him in her life now more than ever. Then, before we even had the chance to respond to the texts, she called us - we hadn't even given her our number, but she had asked her friend for it and contacted us of her own accord. So the same night that we met her and shared that thought, we went to her house and got to know her better, and shared a little about the restoration. She prayed that the Lord would lead her down the path He wants all of His children to be on and thanked Him for sending us. Sister Hanson made a comment later quoting Preach My Gospel about how we're told to go to people who will recognize us as servants of the Lord - she is definitely one of those people, and it was humbling to meet her. She has a major surgery this week, so keep her in your prayers!
Tender Mercy: there is an investigator that the sisters have been teaching for a few months, and I got to meet him for the first time Saturday night. He's incredible - we got there and he pulled out his Book of Mormon, which was all marked up and highlighted, as well as a notebook where he'd been taking notes and recording his thoughts and impressions. I've never seen an investigator so eager and dedicated to learn! In our lesson we had a major breakthrough with his understanding of what faith is, and he came to the New Member Fireside last night and we saw a step forward there as well from everything Hna Hanson has told me. But the tender mercy was much more personal to me than any of that. In the course of our lesson on Saturday, I learned that he had been to the Christmas concert last month, and that the spirit that he felt there motivated him to continue learning and taking the things the missionaries were teaching him seriously. He said he'd felt "Magic." It was such a tender mercy for me to know that the concert had not only touched people, but that it had served its purpose of helping bring people closer to Christ - at least for one person. I felt so much love from my Father in Heaven at that moment and feel so privileged to have been a tool in His hands.
Hilarious Moment: This might have been my favorite moment of the week. We met a potential investigator and made an appointment to go back to her house Thursday morning at 10:30. We drove up, parked the car, said the prayer, and got out - only to find that two other women had walked up to the door and were waiting for her to answer. They stared at us as we approached, and we introduced ourselves - and learned that they were missionaries from another church. We stood there a little awkwardly until the investigator opened the door, surprised to see all four of us there. She looked to the other missionaries and said, "Didn't we say Tuesday?" As awkward as it was, Hna Hanson and I just thought it was hilarious - but the other women did not. They looked to her and said, "You made an appointment with them as well?" When she confirmed, one of them said, "Well, we believe in the Bible." "So do they," she immediately retorted with a smile. The woman who spoke seemed flustered. Hermana Hanson and I just stood there smiling. The investigator invited to have all of us come in, but we politely said we thought it would be better if we came back another day. Then she said, "Well, we can all say a prayer together!" It really did seem like the least awkward thing to do in that moment - and yet the other missionaries immediately looked uncomfortable. One of them muttered, "We're not accustomed to praying outside ..." but when the investigator came out onto the doorstep they apparently decided to go with it. She held out her hands so we could all hold hands, but the other missionaries refused and just shook their heads at her until she put them down. One of the other women offered to say the prayer, and she prayed for a blessing on the investigator and that she could learn the truth. But as she finished, the investigator immediately picked up the prayer where she'd left off and said, "And bless Hermanas Garner and Hanson as well, because they are also Your servants and prophets carrying Your word to the people. Bless them with safety and success. Amen." Sister Hanson and I were both touched, and we gave her a hug before turning to leave. The other missionaries seemed very upset, but in all honesty Sister Hanson and I just couldn't stop laughing once we were in the car driving away. Throughout the day we'd just remember it and start laughing all over again. It was a great moment, and what made it even better was the way the investigator defended us.
Love,
Hermana Garner
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