April 21, 2014

Hey mom,

 

Benjamin got baptized! There are now ten members in Macedonia. And now we're back to having zero investigators....

Yesterday was pretty interesting, let me tell you about that. For Easter after church and everything we ate at the Andersons, who by the way leave on Wednesday since their mission will be over. They've been here since before there were proselyting missionaries. The Nelsons arrived about two weeks ago and will replace them. When we got home our neighbor came over with a huge basket of painted eggs and told us to take one. It was so nice! Then later when we were out contacting we talked to an old lady sitting on a bench and she pulled two similar eggs out of her purse and gave them to us. It was very nice, but we were both afraid to eat them so we threw them off the bridge into the river. I said I would rather throw mine at one of the couples making out along the riverbank, but we agreed that we didn't want to get sent home for egging.

A few weeks ago we took Benjamin to the branch Family Home Evening which is held at the Andersons every Wednesday night. Long story short, it was really, really awkward and we decided to never take an investigator there again. Then the other day in a lesson he asked us, "Why haven't you taken me to FHE again?" We were shocked that he had actually liked it. Enough to go back.

We had a really great lesson with him just before his baptism. We were talking about happiness. As missionaries one of our duties is to help investigators realize when they feel the Spirit. I asked him how he felt when he met with us, came to church, etc. 

"Good," he responded. 

I asked him to elaborate. "Normal good or really good?"

"Really good."

"Like, happy?"

"No, something else."

"Have you ever felt this way before?"

He shook his head. "No."

The rest of the lesson I tried not to cry and told him that what he was feeling was the Holy Ghost. Me and Sister Schofield shared some scriptures with him about it. Great lesson.

Elder Krajnc has been really sick for the past two weeks and has had to stay inside. The other elders all take shifts staying with him. Hopefully he gets well soon.

When we contact, I think a lot of people are turned off by the fact that we meet at a hotel. They think I'm a human-trafficker or something. One of our goals is to get a building by the end of the year, and I anxiously await that. It's nice when we're at Center because if people don't know where it is, it's within their sight if I just point. 

I was talking to Benjamin one day about our situation with the language and how frustrated I was with it. Then a few days later he asked if he could take my notebook home and make corrections in it. So nice! So glad we found him. 

The Sisters serving in Kosovo are coming down on Wednesday to do exchanges with us here. They'll just be here for a day.

I think I am out of news and good stories. 

Love,

Sister Riddle

Luke 24: 36-48