This
week was jam packed with work to do. Elder Taukiuvea and I have been running
around all week from lesson to lesson all over our area. We polished off our
week with 36 lessons! Now I don't know what thing are like in other missions,
but for me, this was a personal record. We have been giving it everything we've
got in our area and we are seeing the blessings that come from our diligence.
Hercilio
and Saquina are now planning their wedding for the 26th of November and are
super excited for their baptism the following week. (I'm not sure if I
mentioned that in my last letter or not).
Belmiro
and Berendina both came to church this week, are both studying and
understanding the Book of Mormon, and are really excited about baptism. They
have strong testimonies that the Book of Mormon is true scripture and I have
noticed a huge spiritual change in their lives. When we first met them, they
didn't even know HOW to pray; now when we start the lesson, both are extremely
excited to pray and talk with God. They almost fight to see who gets to open
the lesson with a prayer. Their daughter, Nizia, is as adorable as ever and
also LOVES to pray. They always tell us the funny stories about how at night
she asks if she is allowed to talk with Heavenly Father. This family is so precious
and has been changed already by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We will be teaching
them this week about the Law of Chastity, and I hope and pray that they will be
willing to get married quickly so that their baptism can still happen soon.
Our
other family that we were preparing for the 26th, Elizio and Clara... I got
extremely upset with them this week when they told us that they need to push
back their wedding until maybe February or January... They have been pushing
their wedding back for about 8 months now and I don't know they will ever
decide to keep the commandments and repent. We made it very clear that they
need to repent, but they still just didn't care. We got really disappointed, really
sad, a little mad, and got in their face a little, spit enough fire to just
singe their eyebrows a little, and in the end we dropped them until they are
ready to commit and repent.
On
Wednesday this week we had a division and I walked with Elder Osorio in his
area, and Elder Goes walked with Elder Taukiuvea in our area. It was a super
good division and the most spiritual part was when we visited one of their
new/golden investigators named Edel. He is one of the most wealthy men I've
ever met here in Mozambique, one of the most intelligent people I've ever met
in my life, and also the nicest and most family oriented person ever. When we
sat down with him in his mansion, we began talking about the Plan of Salvation
and he had a lot of great questions, and really understood and loved the answers
that we gave him. At the end of the lesson, he told us that he knew the Book of
Mormon was true, and then he proceeded to tell us about his experience with
Prayer and the Book of Mormon. He told
us that for the first 5 nights after the Elders first met with him, that he
prayed diligently hoping for an answer, but never got one. He said that he
started to get discouraged and when the Elders gave him a copy of the Book of
Mormon, he had more hope, and continued to pray for a few more days. Then he
said that one night he prayed to know if these things were true- just like he
had done before; if Joseph Smith was a true prophet, and if the Book of Mormon
was true, and if this Church is the TRUE church on the Earth today. He closed his
prayer, and went to bed. He said that he was awoken in the middle of the night
by a light in his room that startled him at first. He sat up and saw a man
sitting at the foot of his bed, dressed in a white shirt and tie. The man stood
up and walked out of the room. A little afraid, but also curious, Edel followed
him out of his room, down the hallway, and into the living room that was
completely illuminated by 3 other men, dressed the same way, sitting on his
couches. The fourth man sat with his collegues, and Edel sat in the available
chair. When he looked at the men, they didn't have faces but pure light
radiated from them that made it difficult to look at them. They told him many things
that he said he didn't remember, but the thing that he did remember, was that
each of them testified of the Book of Mormon and the truthfulness of all of the
things that the missionaries were teaching him. He said he couldn't tell how
long they had been there, if it had been 5 minutes or 5 hours, but they
eventually left, and he woke up in his room. He said that he didn't know if it
was a dream or if it had actually happened, but it felt real to him. He tells
us that he felt a peace that he had never before felt. He sat up from his bed, grabbed
his copy of the Book of Mormon, and began reading it. That it enlightened him.
That he knew it was the word of God. He tells us that he knows that the things
we have been teaching him are true. That he cannot deny them. And that he is a
little scared that God has trusted him with this testimony. He is afraid that
he will mess up in the future, that the Lord has trusted him with a great
responsibility that he isn't sure if he will be able to fulfill. He told us
that he needs to speak at church and testify of what had happened to him, and
about the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon- we told him that he can take a few
minutes at Fast and Testimony meeting. As
he told us his story, the Spirit was almost tangible in the room. The Spirit
touched all of us that day, and strengthened my testimony that God answers
prayers. He strengthened my testimony, and I know that he was telling the
truth.
I
know God lives. I know He speaks with His children. I know He loves us. He sent
His Son to save us from sin. Christ showed us the perfect way to salvation. We
have those restored truths today because of a living prophet. Joseph Smith was
a true prophet- The Book of Mormon is evidence of that. Read it. Ponder about
it. Pray and Plead about it. God answers
prayers. This is my testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
*Elder
Ryland Rash*
*note from mom - Again NO pictures or videos....not gonna lie...I am a tad bummed!
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