And it came to pass in the second week of the first transfer of Elder Shadel in the North Carolina Raleigh Mission...
We got stopped by cops!! It was super fun! Apparently we were peeking into car windows from the quadplexes (duplexes but there were 2 on bottom and 2 on top) all 3 of which are a solid 50 feet minimum from the cars. And someone didn't like that and called the cops. Elder Walker and I don't remember looking into any cars but we must have because no one would ever make a false report to the cops.
The cops were really chill and we got stickers! A bunch of the people came out to see what was happening and we offered to share a message with them but no one wanted to talk about Jesus.
Other random things that came to pass:
-A dog bit a whole in one of my pants which is mildly annoying but it's just a small hole.
-Service is fun! I like farming and I love goat milk Gelato! Yellow jackets aren't fun though
-I found some random ties laying around!
-There are so many spiders and spider webs and no one uses their front door so there are tons of webs near doors that we are constantly walking into.
-Bojangles is an exceptional restaurant! If you every get a chance to try a Bo-berry biscuit take it!!!
-Apparently I Bible bashed for the first time and I didn't know until my comp told me. It wasn't a heated argument and I don't know the Bible so I didn't bring any verses to the table so I don't know if it counts.
One of the most interesting things was that she thought we only served missions because the church paid for our college. We let her know that we actually have to pay to do this and we don't get anything in return. I also learned that Jehovah's witnesses believe tithing to be part of the law of Moses which Christ fulfilled so they believe tithing to be a thing of the past.
I came at the beginning of the best season here. The weather is amazing! And the humidity is actually really nice. No bloody noses and my throat doesn't dry out when I run so running doesn't hurt plus it's close to sea level so I can breathe!
This area is also really interesting because it's about 60% hispanic so most people speak Spanish. A ton of people live in trailer parks. But there are also so many farmers that seem to be doing very well out here, farmers that are doing very well, and some retired people that are doing very very well. There is so much economical diversity. Not a ton of racial diversity though. I was told coming out to the east there would be so much more diversity than in Utah but so far around here it's just Mexicans and White people so not too much. But Siler City is really different from other areas especially with how Hispanic it is.
The first time I really felt like someone was listening and not just letting us talk was in a Walmart parking lot on Tuesday. She ended up not wanting a Book of Mormon or to hear more but at least we talked to someone and had a good conversation.
Later on Tuesday we ended up at a gas station we weren't planning to go to and talked to the only person there: the worker. He worked on Sunday but we are hoping to see him in church this Sunday because he expressed interest and gave us his number!! We didn't really teach him anything, just invited him to church. We don't have a lesson planned either so he doesn't count as a new person and we didn't tell him much about our church. Still a really cool miracle to find him though! And the cop story was from Tuesday too. Tuesday was an exciting day.
This week was been tough but not as tough as last week. We found a "new person" everyday Monday-Friday. One of them seems really interesting in learning more! I'm not sure about the others.
My comp is DL so he can see all of the other areas in the district and they are teaching and finding so much more. I know it's not about numbers or comparing but sometimes it's discouraging to see the other areas teaching 10x as many lessons getting way more people to church and finding more people with way less time because they are teaching so much. I don't know how they find so many with so little time.
We've had a several really good lessons and there are a few that seem really interested and I'm really excited to teach them more! We have a few people that are super interested but have lots of medical issues that keep them from being able to go to church and we are trying to help them be able to go.
Sometimes I want to read 2 Nephi 29 to people but it's a little intense. As soon as we bring up the BoM people stop listening. I wish we could help people understand it doesn't replace the Bible. It's not even an addition to it. It's a separate book entirely and another testament of Jesus Christ. God spoke to all of His people and the BoM is a record of the people in the Americas.
I know the BoM is another testament of Jesus Christ. I know that we don't have to trust in the words of others and we can pray to know for ourselves (Moroni 10:3-5). I know this church is true. I have an amazing family, girlfriend, and friends. I had an amazing job and educational pursuits. I would not have left any of that behind for 2 years if I was not confident that this is the true church. I know that in order to have a witness we have to be open to an answer and be willing to act and pray. And after we show a little faith by reading the Book of Mormon and praying we will receive a witness (Ether 12:6). I know that Christ suffered for our sins to satisfy the law of justice. He promises to pay the debt for us as long as we repent and truly change our hearts and turn away from sin. I know I have felt the healing power of his atonement in my life and I am eternally grateful for it. And I bear witness that Heavenly Father knows, cares for, and helps each one of us. He has preformed many life saving miracles in my life. I testify of these things in the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ, amen.
I also know that Nephi quotes Isaiah a lot and Isaiah is confusing. I finally finished the Isaiah chapters so hopefully I'll have a scriptural thought next week. I'll throw in a testimony every now and then but I don't want it to get too redundant and do it every week.
I love y'all!
And thus ended the second week of the first transfer of Elder Shadel. And there was much work to be done in the land.
Wow! I really didn't take very many pictures. Sorry mom.
Goat farm pictures
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