Hey, so by this Thursday, I am going to Morehead City, which is about 30 min from New Bern. This is a biking mission - I may have to purchase my own bike, and I have to ride in a skirt (I have no idea how this is going to work!).
My companion Sister Mahler is staying in New Bern, and she is going to be training a brand new missionary.
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This week: We didn't do a whole lot of teaching, and many appointments fell through. We had 4 member presents, 1 investigator at sacrament meeting, 1 other lesson, 2 progressing investigators, 7 lessons taught to Less-active members/ Recent converts, and 1 blue book.
We held a Book of Mormon Class on Tuesday, but only Jackie came. Instead of going in depth about the Book of Mormon, we decided to address her concerns. For days she was prompted to go back to a chapter in Nephi and she would pray about it. She didn't understand it but she did as we talked about it and she made a connection to what her sister had told her about her going to the Temple. That really made my night.
We went to Thai Thai Seafood restaurant again, and we went with the Brown Family. We shared a message with them at the very beginning, and right as we were about to leave, Brother Brown brought that old conversation back up again, with something like, "Oh, yes... back to Faith..." and his wife, sister Mahler and I laughed. He does that sometimes and brings conversations around a lot.
We taught Ann again this week; the lesson was quite interesting. She does not understand why there needs to be a second book to the Bible; we asked her if she would like to continue these discussions and she said that as long as the church talks about the Bible, she would (our church does talk about the Bible, A-LOT). She didn't come to church this week. We hope she is still interested in some way!
The highlight of my week was when we taught Colleen. We brought Sister Downing with us.
Colleen believes that Joseph Smith was a prophet and she believes in the Plan of Salvation. She believes in the 3 degrees of Glory because she can see how there are different degrees of living on earth right now (I would think of it being different types of people/ living situations / 1st class, 2nd class, etc). She does not understand the Great Apostasy and would like to see proof that all the prophets were killed at one point to show that the Priesthood Authority had been removed from the earth (the different churches today - since the Priesthood - the Authority to Act in God's name had been removed from the earth, many different churches were formed because they were in search for the truth. If the authority had not been removed, people would not need to search to find the truth. There one true God, and one true church <3 )
- Colleen also says that the only church she is going to attend is the Mormon religion and she mentioned how the Baptist faith prepared her for Mormonism.
-She mentioned how her husband told her that the missionaries are trying to convert her, and was warning her of that; she mentioned to him how this was her decision, and after he realized that, he said that he would read the Book of Mormon right after she was done reading it. She also mentioned that God was telling her to keep reading the book. She is far into 2 Nephi now - I've never heard of an investigator read so far in such a short amount of time before.
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The missionaries helped Margie move into a new trailer this week, too. It is far bigger than her previous one. It was interesting to see that when they were preparing to have the U-haul in the yard, Margie, and her other daughter outside the U-haul brought out their cigarettes. I don't think I missed a day where I saw someone bring out a cigarette. People smoke so much in the south!
There was a woman in a nursing home that was out in the hallway, with her head down low. She was a very elderly woman and she said, "I'm by myself." And then she started crying. Sister Mahler and I went to talk to her and Sister Mahler gave her a Book of Mormon and explained it to her. She said she would read. I wanted to tell her that through Jesus Christ, she can never be alone, but, the opportunity passed.
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Other things:
My new favorite tree besides the birch tree are crepe Myrtles. I just love the wood and how some branches can curl.
- I have noticed that, as pointed out by my companion - that when we talk about negative things, we invite a negative spirit in. When we talk positive about others and we do not talk about evil things, we have a better chance at keeping the Holy Spirit to abide.
-Many people in the south have a hard time letting things go in the past. They don't let you forget anything!
This is all I can post for now!
It is quite amazing how Simple the teachings are with the gospel, and how great the blessings are that come from following Christ. It has been seen time and time again where the wise and complex cannot understand the gospel, because it is so simple. So many cannot comprehend it, especially those who are carnally-minded rather than spiritually minded. A scripture that reminds me of this is Alma 32:23 - "And now, he imparteth his word by angels unto men, yea, not only men but women also. Now this is not all; little children do have words given unto them many times, which confound the wise and the learned. "
I know this gospel is true and I am so grateful for this opportunity to serve. I cannot express in words how I completely feel about serving the Lord, but I can tell you this: by being a latter-day saint, and by following the teachings within the church, I have been happier than I have ever been. I hope that for those who want something more in their life, this church has it. I invite y'all to church and I can promise you that as you live the gospel, your life will be blessed beyond this life.
-<3
Sister Marshall
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