The Lord's Timing

4 Mar

When I was with Elder K. Week 3 of Transfer 1 back in the City... we got this referral named Anfon.. so each night when we set goals and made plans to contact and teach referrals... We put on our To-Do List.. "Anfon"... Each time we tried to go it always got pushed back... because he was about 20min walking distance from the City so we didn't have time to go..And finally.. Week 3 of Transfer number 2 with Elder G... We had been preparing for Zone Training Meeting the whole day and still hadn't finished. But we felt just in the middle of it... "Hey... Let's go see Anfon!..." So we both agreed the Spirit was telling us we needed to go. We booked it across the City only having 1 hour to go see him and come back before our MCM... But as always.. on the way we got held up talking to people and giving out English Class Flyers.. But we get there about 5:40.. Super late!... And we found that the address was this place called 'Campus Lodge'.. so it looked like a phony.. So we were bummed but we were like.. "well we came all this way.. let's just go knock on it.. "... Then right as we were about to.. this guy walked out and was leaving then took a second look back and said.. "Wait!... Are you Mormons?"... We were like... "Why yes.... yes we are =D..." Then he introduced himself as a Less active member from Taiwan!... And he said.. "I'm the manager of this place... students lease a room here for a year when they study... I have 22 Taiwanese students who want to learn... perhaps we could organize a time we can have lunch and you can meet them all!".... We were dumbfounded... "Why yes..... yes we should have lunch with all of them ^_^"... Then I asked... Well we actually came here because there was someone named Anfon that wanted to learn here...

He asked the receptionist... "Do you know an Anfon here?"... She replied.. 'There's no one with such name that lives here'... Then he just brushed it off and went off on his way after we exchanged numbers....

We realized how PERFECT and amazing the Lord's timing is!!... If we had not followed every prompting to talk with certain people for certain amounts of time... for example.. I had 1 distinct prompting whilst talking to this semi-interested girl from China.. "Wrap it up.. Perishing souls elsewhere are waiting for you".... So I did and we got that just at the right time!... If we got there any later... The manager would not have been there... and we would've asked the recpetionist for Anfon... and she would've kindly said he doesn't live here... and we would've left... having missed the potential blessings he had in store for us.... And that's what it's like with any thing in life... you can choose to slack off on your mission... you can choose to not fulfill your callings to your fullest ablilities.. you can choose not to follow promptings... but just know... you are missing out on far greater blessings Heavenly Father has hand made just for you!.. 

Miracles are every where... They surround us.. But are we aware enough to capture them?...

10 Mar

 I have an exciting miracle for this week! So if you recall a month or 2 ago... my email about 'desire' and how when I was on trade-offs.. My District Leader and I found 2 New Investigators in the space of like 30-40mins... One of them... her name was K from China... she was progressing really well.. they were going to set a baptismal date with her until she said.. "I'm actually going back to China in 1 week for a month to get married.. I don't think my husband will approve so I probably won't join"... So that was pretty sad... but when she got back this past week.. she called up the Elders and said.. "Hey, I'm back!... And I want to join the church!".... #miracles.

I had the greatest joy though when the Elder who was teaching her came up to me and was like "Ohhh my goodnessss! I'm so happy!!! This is the best day everrrr!"... To be able to give that joy to a fellow missionary just by simply finding someone for them to teach... was priceless...

On top of that.. and just as great as baptisms.... is RE-ACTIVATION!... For rescuing someone who has already made those convenants is sooooooo amazing!... We were able to have 3 amazing people back at church this past Sunday!... Working with Less Actives is so great when you can have them recount their spiritual experiences... The Spirit immediately floods the room when it happens. But yeshhh there's a few miracles for you!

17 Mar

As for this week!!... WOOOO!!! It was an absolutely incredible week... BEAST... or as the spanish say... bestio.... We will be having 2 miracles this weekend.... or another word they call it... baptisms. C is from China.. he had been smoking for 8 years and has quit cold turkey with the 15 step program!.. He's truly been a miracle though.. The only reason he met with us in the first place is because he had a super powerful experience with prayer in China... and he planned to be baptized in a church there but his preacher moved so he had no one... then when he moved here to Sydney.... he met us :)

And on top of all... Tis transfer week... so even with the feeling that I have (of being transferred)... What better way to leave than with witnessing a child of God entering with Him in a promise... It is truly humbling... and a miracle... to be apart of the greatest work in the world... The gathering of Israel... I can truly feel strength whenever I kneel down at night to pray.. that I am apart of an +85,000 full time missionary force.. That not only you and the family... but people every where are praying for missionaries... So I thank you for continually having faith that I am able to do this with His help.. and with yours.

 

Mar 25

Sooooo the shock of the week! My companion got transferred!! o.O. So it's officially stamped I'll be dying in the City for my last 12 weeks! And what's cool as, my companion Elder W, He's been out 7 months but he's gun as!! He's from Texas, speaks spanish.. assigned Korean speaking.. and he went to Harvard majoring in statistics and economics... to say the least I love him..he's beast!.... And shock #2 of the week... FAIR DINKUM KATE IS IN MY WARD!!! Yes.. Kate Ball.. I've already seen her heaps! We went out to dinner last night.. it is like the weirdest/coolest thing ever!.. She's such an amazing returned missionary though.. I took her to Spanish class and she was going to town, teaching this Colombian investigator.. She's already fellowshipping and cleaning up the chapel.. every thing you wish a member could do and she's doing it.. #cousins. So yeah it's going to be exciting.. She's gonna be here when I give my last talk in Sacrament and all... I'll tell her to record it.. 

Another miracle.. Our investigator C got baptized!! WOOO! But for now every thing is going awesome! New Transfer = New Start... so I'm going to be applying every thing that I have learned and teach it to my new companion before I get transferred to NZ.

#miracles everywhere

For a miracle though, we recently started teaching this Chinese guy named  C,this week.. our first lesson with him was amazing!.. He accepted to be baptized and shared about this amazing experience where he prayed to God for the first time in China and felt this overwhelming feeling of love and peace... He then said from that experience alone he believed in God.. although so many others told him He is not real!... We were able to share with him that what he felt.. Was indeed God's messenger.. the Holy Ghost.. He's now preparing himself to be baptized on March 8th!.. WOOO! #miracles everywhere.

We met this guy named J from China.. and we had a really good first lesson with him... and we haven't seen him in a couple weeks due to him being antied from his friend... but he decided to come back and learn from "Official" representatives of the church and we set a baptismal date with him for the 22nd of March!!.. MIRACLE!... It's truly a blessing and the investigators perspective truly changes when they actually see you as an Official Representative of Jesus Christ!...AMAZING! .

 Another RANDOM AS moment... I was on trade-off with an Elder and in the City it's super busy.. so I was walking down the street trying to spot a white shirt as to where he was at... I stopped and looked around for a bit... Then I looked directly across the street and this girl comes sprinting at me... And so I was just like... 'I wonder where shes going'... then she gets closer and closer... 'I should probably move'.... Then she comes and haults and goes 'CALEB!'....

It was fair dinkum Esther McCarthy!!!! She came up and tried to hug me and I just put out my hand.. 'I can't hug I can't hug!!!' Hahaha. She was there with her sisters Antonia, Genevieve and Madeleine!.... It was by far one of the top most random moments on my mission... And no joke.. like 10 feet away from where I met Victor Kim from Quest Crew... I need to go to that spot more often.. who knows who I'll meet next... perhaps Jesus.... But yeah she snapped a selfie of us so it may be on FB hahah... who knows. 

As for miracles!... Our Zone has finally reached a grand total of 175 New Investigators,this.month! The highest the Zone or any Zone in the mission has gotten was 109NI... And it's nothing to say about previous missionaries not being good or us being beast mode... It's merely just a testament that the Lord is hastening His work.. It's time to start breaking new ground... Elder Nelson just announced in the Ward Council meeting he attended that there was a stake trying to be created in the Baltic Region over 4 countries!... He said relating to it.. "We've got growing pains all over the Church!".. With the amount of trust and work that is happening.. It's time that we all need to step up to a higher sense of commitment than ever before.. And that's not to be interpreted in the way that we need to be amazing dynamic instruments as the Elder Holland or the Apostle Paul type... it merely means we need to be ready and willing to take any errand the Lord needs run... Elder Nelson said "The Lord uses the unlikely to accomplish the impossible!"... He illustrated that through many examples.... take Moses for example.. commanded to take the Children of Israel to the shore of the Red Sea... And then the waters divide and they walk through on dry land??? Unlikely?... Yes!.... And how about Abraham and Sarah... Promised to bear children... Every one knows that 90 year old women don't bear children.... But the Lord brought forth Isaac to them!... Unlikely??... Yes!... And how about the prophecy of Isaiah?... The Savior being born of a Virgin?... Every one knows Virgins cannot have children!... yet the Savior came into the world from the Virgin Mary... Unlikely???... Yes!... And last for example... a 14 year old boy... appeared to.. By God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ?.. And appointed to restore the Church of Jesus Christ in it's fullness?... Unlikely?... Yes!!... It has to be unlikely!!... that way no one can misunderstand who is at the Head of this work!!.. It is not by man... but by God... 

Ahhhh He went onto so many great topics but that was one of my favorite that he addressed!.. And the amazing thing beyond all.... During the whole course of the Conference... I felt the Spirit the strongest... during 2 specific times.... When Elder Nelson walked in.... and when he walked out.... Namely when he walked out of the building... as he came passing us on his way out the door... The spirit bore witness to me... and the words came into my head... which were not my own words... and whispered to me... "He is my witness"  ... I know with a surety... no doubt in my mind.. That not only him... but every normal person that is appointed as a leader for His church... is called of God... Once that mantle is on them... they are not their own... for God is directing them.