Hello family! (and loved ones)
I use the caption of the song "Who's on the Lord's Side?" as the subject of this email because MEMBER MISSIONARY WORK IS SO IMPORTANT! The number of missionaries and missions has increased, but the number of baptisms hasn't. The only - the ONLY way more people will be baptized is by members INVITING their friends to learn! Being in a singles ward, it's becoming more apparent that members HAVE GOT to be inviting! I'm excited to be a bomb member missionary when I get home. In the mean time, enjoy a story from this week about member missionary work:
We had a member that is preparing for a mission (Caesar) bring his non-member friend (Nancy) to church! She thought it was different, but good. We have an appointment with her for this Friday at 3, with him there. We are really excited!!!!! This will probably be our first real investigator. We're trying. It's difficult in a young single adult area. And there are'nt that many people out on the streets, so it makes street contacting hard.
This Sunday is the day people are inviting their non-member friends to come to church, with talks from recent converts, a Plan of Salvation Sunday School, and a panel for answering questions about the gospel in the 3rd hour. We're talking to people about who they're bringing, and it sounds like it's going to be good. It's really helping us get missionary work going, since we don't know where to find YSA aged people in Poway.
We thought we had a really solid referral from a member, but he lives in the stake beneath us. =[ His name is Matt, he's 26 and has been through a lot in life. He just recently found Christ during a really hard time in his life, and he wants to quit smoking. It's his last crutch before he is addiction free. Anyway, we started this really cool stop smoking program with him yesterday. We are praying that he'll be able to do it. He's supposed to be smoke free by next Monday. Well, he threw his cigarettes away already, but he's supposed to make it 7 days without smoking. It's pretty exciting.
There is a guy in our ward, his name is Paul, that just recently got the Melchizedek priesthood. He was baptized a few years ago, and then he went less-active, and now he's back. Anyway, he has a lot of questions that have been holding him back. We talked to him last week (pre-advancement in the priesthood) He saw in D&C 84 that is a man has the Melchizedek priesthood and he turns away from it, he cannot be forgiven in this life or the next. I showed him a verse in D&C 58 where Christ says that if we repent He will forgive us. We also pointed out people that go less-active and come back and they have the same blessings as people who didn't go less-active. Anyway, we think that helped him. Men just wouldn't be forgiven if they didn't repent from turning away from the Melchizedek priesthood.
Anywho...... Paul was waiting outside of the RS room for us on Sunday. He says "Sisters, can you come sit in while I get the priesthood?" He was practically beaming! So we went. It was really neat. He hugged everyone in the room except us. And us, he gave us really good handshakes and looked us right in the eye and said "Thank you SO much for coming!" It was really tender.
Also, about 2 weeks ago, Rob, my convert in Chula Vista, got the Aaronic priesthood!!!!! Whoo-hoo!!!! I was so happy, I hugged my companion. =P
I've been picking up speed reading the Book of Mormon lately. I'm still in my 2nd time through on my mission, still using orange to highlight all the words Christ speaks. I'm right in the middle of his ministry among the Nephites. I was really touched by 3 Nephi 19:2-3, where it says that people traveled all night long in order to hear Christ when he came to speak the next day.
2 And it was noised abroad among the people immediately, before it was yet dark, that the multitude had seen Jesus, and that he had ministered unto them, and that he would also show himself on the morrow unto the multitude.
3 Yea, and even all the night it was noised abroad concerning Jesus; and insomuch did they send forth unto the people that there were many, yea, an exceedingly great number, did labor exceedingly all that night, that they might be on the morrow in the place where Jesus should show himself unto the multitude.
As I was talking about it in companion study this morning, I started to tear up because of their love of Christ, their desire to see Him, and their testimonies. I love Jesus Christ. The longer I'm on my mission the more I love Him, and I hope that when Christ were here, I would travel all night long to see him. It really would be worth it.
Ummm.....I don't know if I have anything else to say. I love being a missionary! =D =D =D
I love you all! -Sister Audrey Bishop
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