August 19, 2013 - Go with the motions...

 

What a packed week... we are so busy. We had lots of RDVs and good stuff happening this past week!! We had several RDVs with our ami Nicholas, but we decided we need to drop him. He was going to be baptized the 31st, but he wasn't keeping any of his commitments, he refused to stop smoking, and he hasn't come to church for the past 5 weeks we have been teaching him. He basically meets with us because he is bored and he thinks we are cute and charming... too bad. He will be prepared for the gospel one day I'm sure, but not now and not with us.

 

 

Today has been kinda rough. We had a few good RDVs with our golden ami Steve in Limoux this past week. We taught him the plan of salvation, and he told us it was incredible how paralleled our beliefs are with his. He is so spiritually in tune. He really opened up to us about his son passing away a few years ago. He has been reading, but hasn't prayed yet. He is a photographer and had an exhibition this weekend that he invited us to. We were able to go for about 20 minutes. He's INCREDIBLE! He even took some pictures of us last week and put them in the exhibit... so of course they were beautiful pictures, haha. He's just so cool. Well we had a RDV with him this morning... and he dropped us. He met this girl this past weekend and she "changed his point of view on life". Hes decided to move to Japan for some reason because it feels right to him. He thanked us for our time and told us it was a pleasure and that he would never forget us. He wants us to keep in touch when we get home. He told us he is happy where he is now and that he doesn't think he needs to change or be tied down to anything. He wants to be free from attachments... so he was really nice about it, but when he left the park where we were sitting I turned to Soeur Bayles and just started crying. We thought he was golden. We thought he would for sure get baptized... but Soeur Bayles and I talked. He will be baptized. He just needs more time. We were able to give him a solid foundation. He still has the Book of Mormon, and his experience with us will make him very open to other missionaries he will eventually meet in Japan. So yeah... it was a bummer, but for the best I'm sure. The Lord knows us and what we need. Steve isn't lost. He is continuing his path.

Cool miracles! On our way back from Limoux one day last week I sat across from a woman on the train. She saw my tag and started talking to me and asking me questions. She is evangelist, so she started to tell me how wrong I was and that the Book of Mormon couldn't be true and that organized religion is a sham... well President's words came to my mind again, "talk about Christ". I bore her my testimony of the Savior and she really opened up to me about her love for Jesus. She was so warm and the spirit was like a wall. I realized my companion and I had made the goal to have a RDV today but didn't have one planned... I realized that the Lord had put this woman in my path for a reason... I asked if we could pray together and she insisted it was necessary. She asked me if she could keep the Libre de Mormon, the book she had slandered just minutes previously. She also gave us her information and told us she wanted to meet with us and learn more. The love of the Savior touches hearts and penetrates the Spirit. Don't forget it.

We saw this woman (Monique) again this morning randomly in a ville where she doesn't live. We see so many miracles.

Another miracle! The other day we made a goal to visit a less active family in Pennautier... well we didn't have their address and they weren't answering the phone... so we went around porting for a while! We saw a lizard, so we prayed, and we knocked on a door three minutes later to find the Anderson family... WHAT?! How lucky could we get?! But it wasn't luck. It was a miracle and anther example of the Lords work being pressed forward. The Anderson family is from New Zealand. They are a GORGEOUS family with 5 kids. The dad is a rugby player for the Carcassonne team. None of them speak French, so they don't come to church too often because they don't understand! We felt really lucky to see them. They came to church yesterday and we translated for them. They invited us over for dinner after church... Which was soooo amazing. They grilled. We shared a short spiritual thought about Christ. Sister Anderson and the two oldest daughters were in tears when they shared their feelings about the Savior. They are such a great family. They are so fun and cool and strong. We really feel like we brought the spirit into their home and they feel more welcome at church when we translate for them (which is literally the hardest thing I have ever done in my entire life...). So yay.

Cool thing... we had zone training this week in Montpellier and we stayed the night with the Soeurs there. One of them was Soeur Hirschi... so I thought thats weird and not a common name. When I told her I was from Atlanta she asked if I knew Jodi... WHAT?! They're cousins. What a small small world... I MUST BE HER COMPANION!!

 

Yesterday after we ate at the Andersons house we had like 30 minutes till we needed to be inside... we decided to go get some contacting in because we made a goal to have a RDV but hadn't. We talked to a woman on a bench but she didn't seem interested. We left her a pass along card. We walked about 50 feet away and I swear, it wasn't subtle at all, the Spirit punched me in the gut and turned me around. We went back and asked the woman if we could share our message right there on the bench. She accepted and we talked about the Saviors love for her. She cried. We gave her a Book of Mormon. She is contacting the missionaries when she gets home from vacation. The Lord is so incredible. I have truly seen the blessings of following the promptings of the Spirit. Never push feelings away. YOU WILL REGRET IT! I am so grateful for this gospel.

Passez une bonne semaine! Je vous aime, et j'espere que vous pouvez ressentir l'amour de dieu chaque jour. Jésus est notre sauveur. N'oubliez pas ça!!

Avec tout mon amour,

Soeur Beeny