Today started with a baptismal interview. One of the investigators needed to have an interview with me due to the response to one or more of the interview questions. I then got to participate in one of the 1 and ½ hour district meetings. All the districts in the zone have district meeting each Tuesday from 11am to 12:30 pm. The district I met with was led by Elder Maker and we had his companion Elder Falconbury, Elder Moore and Elder Tehoiri, and Sister Maraetefau and Sister Latu. It was a good meeting with Elder Moore and Sister Maraetefau taking the lead in training on unity (Elder Moore) and on Charity (Sister Marraetefau). Elder Maker lead a discussion on recent proselyting results in the district and setting district goals for the coming week. Jan attended a separate district meeting. The zone leaders and Jan and I then went to lunch. We stopped by one of the bakeries in town and bought sandwiches. I couldn’t resist buying my favourite French pastry (the mille feuille)J During the afternoon Jan went to inspect four apartments and I went with Elder Stilson and his companion Elder Ulivaka to visit an investigator they have. This investigator has accepted the challenge to be baptised on the 24th of September. However, she is having trouble with smoking. The elders have been patiently working with her and encouraging her with lessons, blessings, a plan to gradually reduce her smoking habit and they thought a visit from me might also help. The meeting went very well. I felt to teach her about the cycle we see many times in the Book of Mormon where righteousness begets blessings and prosperity, then comes self-confidence and pride trusting in their own abilities, then comes temptation and transgression, then fewer blessings as they are left on their own to suffer the consequences. Then there is a humbling process, repentance, building up of confidence, blessings come and the cycle continues. I then suggested that in our personal life a similar cycle can occur. As we are trying to be righteous we receive blessings and confidence. Then we find ourselves in a situation that causes us to be tempted. It may be the company we keep, the thoughts we entertain, or simply the passage of time and a combination of life’s experiences that cause us to feel tempted and we succumb. Then comes feelings of guilt and disappointment and we may find ourselves feeling like we can’t do what the Lord expects of us. Then we may humble ourselves and perhaps with the help of friends, family, or church leaders, we may find hope and we pursue the conditions of repentance. In so doing, blessings come, we build up in our confidence and again we may find ourselves back at the top of the cycle. I explained to her that the key to avoiding this cycle is to identify a way to break it before slipping back into transgression.
I then went with Elder Durtschi and Elder Mauri. We went to a home that they had tracted into about a week earlier. They didn’t have an appointment but we did find the mother with three children at home. We got her permission to teach her a lesson. After speaking with her some minutes we learned that a sister-in-law had passed away since their first visit. The Elders spoke to her about our beliefs about the eternal nature of the family and that through proper priesthood authority we can be sealed forever to our families. They did a good job teaching about this subject and gave her a Plan of Salvation brochure. I had the opportunity to bear my testimony about the calling and service of these missionaries and how the messages that they would share with her and her family would change their lives forever if they would listen to the whisperings of the Holy Ghost and prayerfully consider their messages.
Elder Olsen and Elder Rock then took Jan and I with them to visit a recent convert of theirs. We met with him and after a hymn and a prayer we left a message about scripture reading with him. This too was a very nice experience and we felt the Spirit with us as we taught him how daily scripture reading opens the door to personal revelation. I explained to him that the leaders of the Church encourage everyone to read the scriptures daily. This is not so that we will have a Church filled with scriptorians. Rather, through daily study of the scriptures our hearts and minds will remain in tune with Heavenly Father and we can feel the promptings of the Spirit help us learn His will for us each day.
Jan and I were then dropped off at the hotel (around 7pm) and we grabbed a quick bite to eat from the groceries we had in the room, went to the laundry room to press the rest of my white shirts for the trip, and then did some preparations for the training meeting to come tomorrow. I also got caught up on a number of e-mails that were too complicated to field from my blackberry and finished an eventful day.
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