Learning Patience as Sheep Graze in Outer Pastures

 

            We had some exciting finding experiences this week.  I am not much for tracting (door to door) as a finding tool, but we resort to it when necessary.  So, since we don't really have any progressing investigators, we decided to go tracting in some areas that I had not previously worked to find some awesome people to teach.  After we spent some time talking to a lot of people who were not interested, we began walking down this road when I turned to my left and saw a house with some people standing around outside.  I felt that we needed to talk with them.  We talked to this young nanay who didn't want to talk to us, because she's INC.  (INC is short for Iglesia ni Cristo, a popular church in the Philippines.)  Great.  We started talking to her, and she then told us that she hasn't attended her church for years and that she has a lot of questions about how to find the true church.  We talked with her for a while longer and then she agreed to have a lesson.  We taught the Restoration and answered all of her questions.  She then gave the closing prayer.  As she ended her prayer, she wiped away tears.  It was just such a powerful moment.  We went to teach her again, but she wasn't home.  Man.  I'm really hoping we'll be able to teach her again this week. 

Jordan outside the chapel basking in the glow of a beautiful Philippines sunset

            We taught Marimar again.  (I mentioned her last week.)  She's one of our branch missionary's classmates, and she is also INC.  We had great lessons with her, and tried to get her family more involved since they fed us and we provided service for them by repairing the door on their little shop in front of their house, but they still don't want Marimar to go to church, even though she's getting to the point where she knows that the Church is true.  Another focus for this week. 

            We actually had the greatest finding experience that I've experienced so far in my entire mission.  (Well now I have to write this all again, since the internet crashed and it didn't save what I'd written.  Yay.)  We got punted from our last appointment of the night, so we decided to go tracting again.  We decided to go down this one street that I'd hadn't been down before.  We knocked at the last house and we were greeted by a very kind father of eight daughters.  Seven of them live at the house and we met six of them.  Anyway, we talked with him and he said that we could teach him and his family.  So we set a time to teach the Carion family.  When we arrived for the lesson, the family was waiting for us (which was very cool - as the keeping of first appointments like this is on the rare side).  We taught them twice this week.  The first time, we taught the Restoration, and it was awesome.  The Spirit was very strong and we were able to answer all of their questions.  We then taught about the Book of Mormon and we were able to help them a little bit with their doubts about it and they committed to read and pray about the Book of Mormon as a family.  Talk about awesome, right?  We are so excited about the Carion family.

Gospel Principles class, taught by the missionaries

            So you're probably thinking that we filled the entire chapel on Sunday with investigators, right?  Sad to say - no.  In fact, none of them came to church.  That hurt - especially since they felt the Spirit confirm the truthfulness of our message.  But I know that the Lord is trying to teach me something.  If they don't come to church this week, I'm sure they'll come next week.  I also need to be more patient and have faith that things will work out in the Lord's time.

            Well, I guess that's it for this week.  Congrats Madison for your mission call to Colorado!  I'm sure you'll do awesome there!  Kyle, I'm anxiously waiting to hear where you'll be assigned. (My guess: Philippines Angeles Mission, of course.)  Happy Birthday this week Kambria!!  Hope you and David are enjoying yourselves now that David has graduated.  Mahal ko kayo lahat!! Ingat kayo!

            Elder Jordan "Patiently Tending the Sheep” Royal



Jordan's MTC District, November 2011
(The sisters returned home in March)