It's the Mormons!

April 14, 2014

Wow.

So this week we definitely experienced some miracles. Everything started out slow when I got here. I remember not doing anything the first week and being like "so there's no Hispanics here and all we do is study and go to meetings?" But I've found that as you work hard and do your best to find people to teach, the Lord blesses you.

So I already told you about what has been happening in Robbins. We plan to go up there again on Tuesday with a member to follow up with the people we met. One guy we referred to the English Elders from Robbins is not quite a golden investigator, but I'd say he's silver haha. The English Elders met with him at his college and talked about what makes our church different. They say he was really open and wanted to know more. Then, later that day he posted something on Facebook about how he met with the LDS Elders and how he's exploring other religions. And at the end he said something along the lines of "I feel good after meeting with them. I think this might be the right path for me." So that's good! Pray for their success!

That wasn't the only thing that happened this week. So my companion and I decided to head to the next town over from us called Pinebluff and do some proselyting. Wow. Our goal was to talk to everyone and we definitely saw the effects of that. Every single person we talked to was open and recognized that we were servants of God. We talked to a Black preacher, Deacon So and So, and he commended us for going out and finding lost souls. He said he's working on doing the same thing at his church. Not quite what we're doing, but at least he's religious. He wasn't really interested in what we had to teach, but he was very friendly and he's aware of what's going on in the world as far as the fall of religion and how Satan is working his hardest to destroy religion. He referred us to a Hispanic family down the road. We knocked on their door and the woman proclaimed her disinterest. But then we found out that they go to a church like 45 minutes away because they speak Spanish. So that's when the incentive of translating comes in. We translate and our Church is ten minutes away. So we win in that situation. Hopefully they show up to the Easter program on Sunday. 

This is funny. So we went and knocked on a door and it opened up literally like 3 seconds after I knocked. First thing that comes out of this Lady's mouth is "Honey, it's the Mormons! No, I'm not even kidding. Come look!" It's like we're zoo animals or something haha. So then she apologized and let us come in and talk. Turns out she's a southern Baptist and her husband is in the military. We meet a lot of people in the Military because Fort Bragg is a few miles away. So we talked with them (in English) and they weren't that interested, but we invited them to the Easter program on Sunday. So hopefully they show up there. And then we moved on.

We then tried to talk with/offer service to a man mowing his lawn. He just pretended not to notice us as we stood right outside his fence. Oh well. He's apparently not elect haha.

Then we moved on to a house where a little old black lady was working on some flowers in her front yard. We of course offered our services and she said she was fine. But then she recognized who we were. She knew what church we were from and she actually knows a few members. She said she's been to our church a couple times but she can't go again because she doesn't have time on Sundays. She goes to like three different churches on Sundays, one so that she can help with a food drive. Best lady. So then we talked about religion and how we're doing the right thing and then she referred us to a Hispanic family that lives down the road. So we continued to talk a little more and a little hatchback drove past us and some girl waved at us with a huge grin. She went down the road and turned around to come up to us. She rolled down her window and asked "Are y'all Mormons or Jehovah Witnesses?" She got super excited when we told her we were Mormons. Turns out she was baptized two years ago but stopped coming to Church when her missionaries left. This is why it's so important that the members fellowship investigators and converts! It's SUPER important. So the sister missionaries are gonna contact her and teach her again. YAY! Oh yeah, we have three sets of missionaries in our ward, the Pinehurst ward. English Elders, Spanish Elders, and Sisters. So there's plenty of work to spread around. The members are awesome in this ward and they're all for missionary work.

A couple more interesting encounters. So we were biking and we saw a lighthouse in a front yard. (Yes, the one in my Facebook picture) So we knocked on the door to see if we could take a picture. A little old lady in her 80's came out and thought it was weird that we would want a picture. But then we told her that a lighthouse is the symbol of our mission and she just opened up. Turns out her son was baptized in October and she played the piano at the Baptism. She loves our church, but it'll be hard getting her to leave hers. She's Presbyterian and she's the pianist at her church. But we offered service and she just lit up. So we're gonna see if the youth can pressure wash her house and repaint her lighthouse. It was no coincidence that we found her. She even said it herself "It's no coincidence that you stopped by. I think this was meant to happen." Yes it was! I think her son maybe prayed that we would show up at her doorstep. She said that her son keeps asking her if the missionaries have shown up yet. Now she can say that we have! Miracle.

Last Milagro (miracle). So after Pinebluff we were on our way home and we saw about 20 Hispanics playing volleyball right down the street from where we live. We took the opportunity and talked with them. One guy (the only one not drinking who also had a son with him) came up to us a told us he had seen us biking around. He was really interested and wants to come to church. So we told him where it was and he said he would come. Well he didn't show up yesterday, but we got a call during Sacrament meeting that we were unable to answer. So we called the number back later. Turns out it was him. His name is Antonio and he tried to find our church, but couldn't. So we have an appointment with him tonight at 7.

So as you can see, we experienced a a lot of miracles this week. In fact, everything I just told you was all on Friday. The Lord blesses us when we work hard and do His will. These were no coincidences.

I love it here in Pinehurst. The people are awesome and it's really fun sharing the Gospel. Don't get me wrong, it's not easy, but it is in fact, worth it. Look for us to have a similar week coming up. We get to go to the Temple on Friday! Woo Hoo! I'm excited. Sorry this letter was so long. I just couldn't hold it in. Know that I pray for you while I'm gone and that I feel your prayers working with me. Thanks for all the support and love. Have a good week.

Until Next Week,

Elder Landon Carroll