Black and Dekker

So this week I left the country and came to the big city. It's kinda crazy, I've been in the country ever since January and I'm back in the city now! This area is awesome: lots of success, and my companion is one of the best missionaries in the mission! Elder Dekker is super obedient and a really hard worker!

Yesterday we hadn't planned very well what we were going to do. We visited several people, but no answers. We were starting to get frustrated that nothing was happening, so we said a prayer. Shortly thereafter, Elder Dekker thought of one more person we could try. When they answered the door we thought it was the answer to our prayer! We immediately began to teach, started with a prayer and we ended up having to do that three times before we taught the most golden family ever!

So, we started to teach this one girl. All of a sudden her family pulled up so we tried talking to her parents. They were expecting company which also showed up right when we were trying to set up another time to swing by. That was insane. As we were leaving we asked the lady if she knew any of her neighbors who speak Spanish who would be interested in what we had to share. She pointed to her next door neighbors and the people down the street.

So we went to the neighbor. Same thing!!!!! We started with a prayer and began teaching about the Restoration and her husband arrived, so we tired involving him but he went inside. She seemed more interested than the last lady so we kept going with the message. We figured if the last girl wasn't the answer to our prayer, then the neighbor was. But then we were interrupted again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A young couple and a couple of other neighborhood friends looking for someone walked up to the garage where we were seated. The neighbor went to look for the friend and we found ourselves talking to the young couple. We weren't sure how much longer this was going to go on, but we decided to start another lesson with them. It was like lesson-ception or something. So we did. And they were so open and so interested!!!!!!!!!!

We started off talking about the plan of salvation and how we feel when we bring children into the world, what it feels like to be a parent. Then we shifted gears to the Restoration and promised that little family the blessings of the restored priesthood on the earth. One of the most tender moments of the whole lesson was at the end when we were explaining how an answer from God of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon comes through the Holy Ghost. We related it back to the experience of first holding their babies and knowing that they were a gift from God. We helped them to see that those same types of feelings are those they will feel when they pray to know if this is true. Right after her husband prayed simply and openly, the wife said: " You know what? That feeling of having my babies? I am pretty sure I felt that today a little bit. I think you two were sent by God to help us. Thank you so much for coming."

Those are the moments you don't forget.

God Bless Texas! I am Elder Black. Thus I end mine epistle.