Letter Home: November 5, 2012

So this week was good. The investigator who went out of town had a bad experience with her sister and she said that's not what she wants. And she said that she feels peaceful when she's around "us people" members and elder Leone and me. First off Elder Leone felt like we should go visit and she said she was barely thinking about us prior to us knocking. So that in itself was a miracle! Also after our visit with her she was basically bearing her testimony about the truthfulness of the church. So Elder Leone felt impressed to se a date with her and I just thought that too but it was more of the confirmer when she left the room. We then said we're setting a date with her she came back into the room and we set her date for December 1st and she was like YES! The whole experience built my testimony on the parable of the laborers in the vineyard. Those who have the gospel have the peace of heart and the knowledge that everything is going to be OK in the end. And those who don't have the gospel quite yet they are scared and fearful because they're not sure and on't have the knowledge  that we have. Very blessed I would say.

Also another experience we meet with and investigator who was raised Catholic. But he married a less-active member and she caught fire the last few moths with the spirit of Elijah. So we had a lesson with him and I think he enjoyed it but he's not very talkative. Also before he started meeting with us he had actually got offended by a Gospel Essentials teacher because he was going to call on him to pray. He's very uncomfortable with stuff like that because he feels it's very personal. But I felt like we at least needed to invite him to and also I did but unfortunately he declined but I think it helped him because he knows we're going to ask him. Overall it was good lesson! We were expecting him to sacrament but he wasn't there but he had his wife pass along a message to us not to freak out he had gotten sick. So that was a relief.

So next experience this week. So the last week I guess I got a little homesick... OK I did because it was a bad week. So I had really been praying for something to comfort me I would have taken anything to just get my hopes up and make me plant my feet a little better and get me focused in on the work rather than thinking about home. I'm weird alright to not hear from home makes me think of home and hearing from home helps me focus. So to get into the story. Elder Leone and I went into the softball park to get a hold of some investigators on the phone and to see if anyone would wee us and come to start asking questions. Then we were approached by this lady she said Hi Elders. So right off the bat we figured she was a member and we got to talking and she asked where I was from and I said Payson Utah. She then said Oh really I have some family who lived in Payson and moved to Santaquin. So I curious I asked what their name was and lo and behold I was talking to Jake Barker's Aunt!! So her daughter came up and she actually called Jake and put him on  speaker. I was a little hesitant to talk because that frowned upon but I knew he was heading into the MTC so I figured just telling him good luck and enjoy it was fine so I did and then stopped. But let's just say all in all that experience was Gods tender mercies for me and it was an answer to my prayers. So mom be sure to text Heather Barker to tell her sister-in-law she was a God send and an answer to my prayers!

Love Elder Marvin