Hello sweet friends of the earth!
It's been such a great week. the weather's been great! And I really feel like I'm becoming a representative of Jesus Christ.
On Tuesday we had our District Meeting and then we grabbed lunch at a sushi place before we drove to interviews with Pres. Van Cott in Highland, CA. Elder Buers loves sushi and has been begging me to try it since i got here. first time ever... it was pretty good. Haha. Anyway, the interviews went great and I chatted with Sis. Van Cott while i waited. She gave us a dvd that shows how doing family history work has blessed families and stakes and has helped people to gain/regain their testimonies of the truth. I'm excited to use them to help members "catch the wave".
That night we had a guy, Brother Rogers, come out to teach with us. Our appointment fell through, then our backup, and our backup to our backup fell through. so we parked and thought about where to go. A lady named Cheryl came to mind. she is a member who has been really sick with cancer. when we brought her up, Bro. Rogers was like, "oh yeah, my wife is her visiting teacher," so it was perfect. We dropped by her home and found out that she was in much worse condition than before. We talked and gave all the counsel of comfort that came to our minds. then we gave her a blessing. It was a really powerful experience, especially for bro. Rogers. I love bringing members out to teach because it reminds them of the joy they experienced on their mission and strengthens their faith in the process. I also love the plan of salvation. It's so true! Because of the Savior's great sacrifice and love, death is not the end. We can live with our families for eternity if we are faithful to the commandments of God.
On Friday we had another cool experience. Last week, a guy in the ward named bro. Shoemaker went around his neighborhood and gave away apples he had picked from his own apple tree. With each apple he would give away a pass-along card on which he'd written the address of the church building and the time of our church tour. He talked to many people, and he gave us the address of a man, Lee, who had a lot of questions. we stopped by Lee's house and he let us in. We were able to teach a bit of the plan of salvation and answer some questions. It was so cool. Such a great guy. But it's so wonderful to think that members don't have to have some crazy, over-thought plan to invite others to listen to the missionaries. "By small and simple means are great things brought to pass"! All that matters is that the invitation is from the heart, with love. the Savior and his spirit will take care of the rest.
I know that Savior loves each of us. His gospel is the only way to access true and lasting happiness, and only in and through His name can we be saved and exalted. This is his work, and I am so grateful to serve him. :)
Love,
Elder Judd
