Hey everybody,
How's it going?
I haven't heard from some of you in a long time, so I really do wonder
how things are going with you.
Sorry that I'm to busy to write individual letters to a lot of
different people most of the time. I'm still working on sending
letters to each of the nieces and nephews.
People still are amazed every time that I tell them that I tell them
how many siblings I have, and then I can whip out the pictures that I
have from my birthday last year where we are all lined up against the
wall in the cultural hall.
We will have a baptism this weekend, the girl whose family the elders
found. Hopefully she will be only the first, and the rest will be
baptized as well.
Things are going well here. I don't have a lot of things to write to
all of you because we just spend every day knocking on doors and
contacting in the park when it's warm. It has gotten a lot colder,
but not cold enough to snow. When we wake up in the mornings it's
usually really foggy outside for a few hours.
Every day we look for the people who are ready, and there are actually
a lot, they just each have something that they are not willing to
sacrifice. It says in Preach My Gospel that people will recognize you
as servants of God when you testify and follow the guidance of the
spirit. I used to wonder why people didn't recognize us more often,
but then I realized that a lot of times they do. We come with
something wonderful and they can tell, and they do want it, but they
choose to do what seems easier for them. I have actually had a lot of
times when and investigator told us that it was too hard for them to
change or that it would be too great a responsabilty for them to
handle and didn't want to meet with us anymore.
We talked to a woman in one of the blocs this past week and she gave
the excuse that she couldn't read the Book of Mormon because she
didn't have reading glasses and she didn't have any means of getting
some right then because times are rough with money (for everyone right
now). She was willing to listen, but she let one little thing hold
her back. I promised her that if she showed her willingness to
progress by coming to church God would provide a way for her to get
the glasses she needed in order to study his word. She seemed to
believe me, people have that expression on their faces sometimes where
you can tell that the Holy Ghost is teaching them. She didn't come to
church, but we will go back and visit her again.
Keep being awesome you guys. I'm sure that Ed and Tom will be some of
the best missionaries in their missions. One of the APs told me that
his trainer told him that he would never baptize anyone and that he
would never be able to accomplish anything here. But, it wasn't true
at all. Actually, maybe it was true for the trainer, because if you
don't have the faith that anything will happen, it won't. But it
wasn't true for this missionary, he was super obedient and told me
that he has seen every single thing happen that his trainer told him
wasn't possible.
My mission president shared this with us.
"Wishing to encourage her young son's progress on the piano, a mother
took the small boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated,
the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle
to greet her. Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the
concert hall, the little boy rose and eventually explored his way
through a door marked "NO ADMITTANCE." When the house lights dimmed
and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat
and discovered that her son was missing. Suddenly the curtains parted
and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage. In horror,
the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently
picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." At that moment, the great
piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano and
whispered in the boy's ear, "don't quit, keep playing." Then leaning
over, Pederewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in
a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around the other side of the
child and he added a running obligato. Together the old master and the
young novice transformed a frightening situation into a wonderfully
creative experience. The audience was mesmerized!
"That is the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on our own is
hardly worthwhile. We try our best, but the results aren't exactly
gracefully flowing music. But with the hand of the Master, our life's
work (and your missionary labors) can be beautiful. As you set out to
do your missionary work, listen carefully. You can hear the voice of
the Master, whispering in your ear, "don't quit, keep playing." Feel
His loving arms around you. Know that His strong hands are playing the
concerto of your life. Remember, Heavenly Father doesn't call the
equipped, He equips the called. We testify that you have been called
by Him to do His work. He will see that you succeed.
"For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show
unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I
work not among the children of men save it be according to their
faith. (2 Nephi 27:23)"
Love,
Sora Jay
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