BOOM! Faith In Yo Face!

 Welllllllllllllllllllllllll for this week!... My goodness it was fair dinkum busy!! So first of all... We were on Trade-offs the WHOLE week... just training up other missionaries. We were trying to find these unknown people on their Ward list and the person wasn't home.. So we went to the neighbors house to see if they knew them... they had no clue.. But we started talking to this lady some more and she opened up saying her 2 children a 17 and 20 year old both died recently... and we were able to teach her right then! And she invited us back to talk some more!! And I was with this pretty new missionary and I told him right before we left the flat.. "Elder... we're gonna find a new investigator today!"... And their area is pretty tough and he kinda looked at me like... "Uh huh.. Elder Ball.. whatever you say." haha. BOOM! Faith in yo face! It was definitely heaven sent that we were directed to that lady's door that morning though.. she had been searching for answers for a while and was actually just thinking about it before we knocked on her door! And then all we had to do was testify of God's perfect plan for us and the Holy Ghost did the rest ;)
I even went with one Elder to this far out place in their area... like 1hr30mins away.. And we went farm tracting!! hahaha it was so legit! There were 5 houses and we banged down each one.. It was the definition of BUSH!... Then after we finished the trade-offs we went down to Sydney for MLC (Mission Leadership Council).. And here's the miraculous part of the week... MLC is ALWAYS from the meridian of times haha... held on Mondays.... this past week was held on a Friday... the following day.. (Saturday)... an investigator was being baptized in which my companion who found her 6 months ago... was able to baptize her! And in that service alone 7 people were baptized! It was miracle as! And then the following morning we woke up on Sunday at 5am and drove all the way back home to Coffs... So the whole week totalled up... We drove the equivalent of driving from Arizona to California... and then driving all the way back haha. It was so fun though we saw heaps of miracles! In which when we arrived at church.. right after it finished there was another baptismal service.. (a child of record) but we were praying to find new investigators and the members brought their Filipino friend who wants to learn with us now! WOO! And the mormon.org referral... She was in Queensland for 2 weeks and she finally got back yesterday... We had a lesson with her and she notices the positive impact we have on her and she wants all her kids to have that as well!! So exciting stuff happening!

Fair Dinkum

As for this week! WooooooWeeeeeeeeeeee! We had a fair dinkum miraculous week in Coffs Harbour... So we kicked off the week with that FHE with the Mexican family! In that tiny room in Australia.. I felt like I was in Arizona haha... MEXICANS!!! The goal of the FHE was to establish a relationship with them, not necessarily teaching them continually.. And so we hardcore achieved that.. They really felt comfortable with us and we taught a short lesson and sung mexican songs the whole evening and had mexican food.. And I commited them to make some Horchata and Jamaica... best drinks ever haha. So in September we have an acitivity called Surf Fest and they'll be coming to that so.. step by step =D 

Next... this week we had interviews with our Mission President... and he called us a couple days before and was like I'm going to come out teaching with you afterwards.. Find someone at 4pm to teach... So we were stressing out who we were going to teach haha, but we taught our golden as investigator B... my goodness... I can't even convey the magnitude of his legitness... He. is. the. most sincere/humble investigator I have ever met/taught! He said to us after dinner and after we taught the Plan of Salvation... "Ya know I was just thinking today... When I left for work, my daughter was yelling out 'I want my daddy!'.. And I was thinking if I passed away... and when she's 12 or 35.. she's still going to want her father.. And I want her to be brought up with this belief... that she'll see me again.. Like.. I know when you come over it's not about the pizza or drinking fizzy.. yous are here to impact my life.".... Like no joke he's one of the biggest miracles I've seen on my mission... We started out not even teaching.. just loving and serving him and then we became friends discussing religion.. we've grown with him these past months and it puts in perspective what missionary work should be like.. It shouldn't be.. Alright. You're the investigator. I'm the missionary. But it's just that we're friends... and he recognizes us as representatives of Jesus Christ.. GAHHH it's too awesome to put into words! And to add onto that... his whole family came to church this sunday!!! His wife who's less active... I asked other members the last time she came to church and they couldn't remember... AND SHE CAME... Things are looking up heaps! All I can say... is fair dinkum.... 

 

So we were just out teaching having a normal missionary day... And we had a few more people we planned to see but I just felt a strong impression to go tracting.. So I told my companion and we prayed about a street... I had 3 streets in my mind after... one of them being Aston... I waited and asked my companion and one of his possibilities was Aston as well.. so BOOM! We went there.... When we got close we realized it was just around the corner from the chapel... so it had prob been tracted on heaps.. So we were a little hesitant but I was like nah let's do it! The first door that opened was a single mum who just moved in weeks ago!! And we had a legit conversation and she invited us to come back!! WOO! So we'e going back today so we'll see how it goes! But fair dinkum.. it was awesome just getting that impression out of the blue and then boom! Someone that's interested from tracting! That doesn't happen that often!... 

Another miracle is just this area alone... When I got here there was absolutely NOTHING to do in the evenings... not many member feeds, the town basically goes dead... So we've been trying hard to change that... and we've seen it these past weeks... this week alone was a testimony to me that any area can change with some hard work... We had double member feeds just in one evening and people inviting us over without us even asking and even just last night, we organized a fireside.... a Member Missionary fireside ;)... Because as I thought back before my mission.. I was not taught anything whatsoever... on how to do missionary work.. So we had some speakers and gave a presentation... it was SO GOOD! And the members got pumped as! And so now instead of going to their houses and sharing 'spiritual thoughts' or a gospel message... pfftt... WE'RE GONNA BE ROLE PLAYING! They're excited for it too! So It's going to awesome! And no joke.. right after we finished the fireside... a 16 yr old young man came up to me and gave us a referral and wants us to visit his friend... WOOO! Twas a very very.... inspiring week.

No Greater Joy

We had an awesome as week! I'll tell you 2 experiences!

 

#1- We were teaching the 1st counselor of the Branch Presidency in his home one evening and we were discussing their missionary efforts and how we could help them... They then said they wanted to have a Family Home Evening with us and a MEXICAN FAMILY! WOOOOOOO!!! (I've never taught a single mexican on my mission).. They're catholics but are willing to come over.. And so we were stoked as and were thanking them for this opportunity.. and they then gave us one of the best compliments I've received on my mission... they said "We want to thank you for your dedication! We have met a lot of missionaries and we can tell you are dedicated! That's why we trust you with our friends.. Otherwise we would wait for better missionaries... but no.. we trust you!".... I was just speechless after that... I couldn't stop smiling haha. That just goes to show.. if you do your best and work hard.. people will recognize it! And so this evening we're going to be teaching that Mexican family! This is like the 1st referral this area has received in AGES! Miracles indeed!

 

#2- We were teaching our investigator B and we just finished sharing with him the First Vision and after I bore my testimony to him.. I asked "How do you feel about what we've shared with you?".. And he responded.. "What yous are tellin me now... I wouldn't of believed it a couple years ago.. But I believe you guys! It's just little things that are makin me believe.. Like just the other night I was stressed out of my mind and woke up in the middle of the night and started watching tv and I thought... This isn't going to help me... so I knelt down and prayed and I just felt this immediate calmness! I was even at this funeral and every one was crying.. But I just remembered what you guys have been teaching me and I was just calm..".... Me and my companion just looked at each other and were like FAIRDINKUM!! He's been so prepared it's unreal.. And it makes it that much more miraculous when we're in an area that's not particularly referred to as the "garden spot" of the mission.. yet we've been smashing it..

 

I've experienced no greater joy than sharing the gospel and feeling the spirit that comes with it.. And especially seeing strong and faithful members live the gospel! It's like what Joseph Smith once said- "Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and it will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness and keeping the commandments.".. All the things listed there... all points to the fact that the path that leads to happiness... is the gospel!

Missionary Work at its Finest

As for this week.. It's been a pretty crazy one! The Lord has poured out like countless tender mercies on us though! We've been having like some of the best weeks this area has seen in ages and finally the adversary is trying to shut us down.. we had like 15 lessons cancel like all in perfect harmony.. as if Satan told them all to do it at once hahah. But as we know.. the good always wins if we put in the hard work.. so we kept working.. And in one day when 7 lessons cancelled.. we were able to make up for 4 of those lessons unexpectedly... 2 of them being on the doorstep! And as we bore our testimonies of the Book of Mormon on this Less actives doorstep.. She began to weep and committed to start reading it again! And that same evening we felt prompted to visit this other family right before we went home... and it was SMASH AS!!!... Like no joke.. I've come to realize I'm an addict.. It's become the best problem that any one could ever have haha. I'm always looking for my next 'fix' as to when I can feel the spirit next... And constantly wanting that... you find yourself doing and saying things you could never think of on your own... and this particular lesson this father of this family was expressing this concern... and after he talked for ages... I was like.. "How would you feel... if I told you... every thing you said just now... can be resolved in the scriptures?"... And he didn't believe me one bit... And I was like.. (open scriptures...) BOOM!... And he was dumbfounded... He read it over and over like 10 times and was like... #mindblown... The spirit was so strong for real... and I was able to walk out there with my companion feeling the essence of missionary work at it's finest.. teaching with power and authority... resolving concerns... feeling the spirit... it doesn't get much better than that... So it was a really good week indeed!