May 2, 2011

Hey everybody,



I get to call you... well, actually you're going to have to call me. Our phone number is (deleted) If you could call me at 4Pm MDT (3:00 Pm Pacific) then that would be awesome! The weather has been beautiful (for Canada at least) and we're ready to talk to more people out there.



Are you ready for this? We set 2 baptismal dates for May 21 and found 3 new investigators this week as well. We taught Mike on Thursday. He had a lot of concerns about Joseph Smith and polygamy. Bro Pozzi did a good job of explaining the sociological reasons but then it came down to his testimony of the Book of Mormon. I said, "We can talk logic till the cows come home and it won't make a difference until you ask God these things for yourself. The Book of Mormon is the evidence, every other book you read can give opinions, but the Book of Mormon provides truth." As we planned for this lesson, we prayed and knew we should invite him to be baptized on May 21. Bro Pozzi did quite a bit of talking and I was wondering how in the world we could invite him to be baptized. As we listened and kept a prayer in our heart, the thought came to us that we needed to turn to the Book of Mormon and read the doctrine of Christ. It was clear and simple to Mike what we need to do to be saved. We firmed him for May 21 and he said, "Well, I don't see any reason why not to be." His wife is totally okay with everything but isn't willing to learn yet. We'll continue to work with Nick and see how everything progresses.



We taught Anil on Monday. He is from India and is Hindu but believes that there is only one God and knows Jesus Christ is his Savior (one of the few eh!). He wants to take what he learns from us back to India and be a missionary there. He is married and has 2 kids (ages 17 and 15). He's having a struggle being an immigrant because his kids don't respect him because of the culture change. We taught him Lesson 1 and emphasized the gospel of Jesus Christ over and over again. He knows that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I set my scriptures on the ground for a second and he grabbed them and put them on the table. He said, "Those are holy books!" Yes, missionaries do get humbled. We firmed him for May 21 and he said he feels like the desire for baptism should come from inside and he also wants to learn more.



We taught him on Sunday at the Diaz's the plan of salvation. We really emphasized the doctrine of Christ with him and drilled it into his mind and heart what he needs to do to come unto Christ. It was probably one the best lessons I've ever been in. We firmed him for May 21 and he gave us the same answer from last week so Elder Hansen asked him, "Look inside of yourself. Do you believe that this is what God wants you to do?" He said, "Well, if I'm lucky." So Elder Hansen asked, "Well, will you be that lucky child of God on the 21st?" He said, "Ok, where is this going to happen?" We invited him to pray and ask God if this is something He wants him to do and to not take our word for it but to ask God for that knowledge. I asked him, "Do you believe that Joseph is a prophet of God?" He said "Yes" and I asked him how he knew that. He said, "Well you told me he was. You are holy men. You wear those nametags and I trust you." We thanked him for his respect and told him he can trust us but that he also needs to seek that knowledge from God.



We taught a referral from the west, Mengi. We taught him the 1st lesson as well. He feels he is not ready to be baptized and wants to learn more about the Book of Mormon first. We also taught a man on his porch. We emphasized the doctrine of Christ and he wants to come unto Christ but won;t commit to anything. There is so much work going on in this area and it's all because of the Lord. He truly leads and guides us and places us in people's paths when they need the gospel. As long as Elder Hansen and I remain bold and obedient (which we are doing), we will continue to see miracles flourish here. We had 4 investigators at sacrament (Mike and Anil were there) and a potential investigator as well. We've really focused on seeking revelation in everything we do which has helped us know where to go.


Love,

Elder Madsen