This week has been super amazing and wonderful... do you think that they'll extend my mission to a lifetime call?? I really don't want to leave, I love being a missionary so much!!!! It really is the best job in the whole wide world!!
This week was a miracle week!!! And I love this area!! It is so ghetto, but I love it and all the people that we're working with...piercings, tattoos, drugs, smoking, whatever... I really love them all!!!
So one of the biggest miracles happened with a recent convert named Rob. He got baptized the first week of January, and we haven't been able to meet him since!! I've been here almost 3 months, and I've talked to him on the phone once... so we went and left a note on his door saying that we were not trying to be pests, but that we really just wanted to meet him since none of us have, and that we were just wasting our time trying him if he was just going to keep ignoring us... so awhile ago I had the phone in my hand, and it started ringing, and who should it be but ROB!!!! I just starred at it for awhile, I couldn't believe that he would call us!! He said that he was so sorry that he'd been avoiding us, and that he'd gotten off the path, but that he wanted to start meeting with us again... We were so happy that we all almost started crying!!! We were able to meet with him last week and had an awesome lesson. We read Pres. Uchtdorf's talk "The Way of the Disciple" and it really hit Rob... He is an awesome guy, and I'm excited to start working with him, and help him to get back on the path... he said something that really hit me... he was talking about how the happiest he's been was in the church, and he said that the high that you get from drugs is nothing to compare, and is empty, but true happiness is to be found in keeping the commandments...
One of the other awesome experiences has to do with an inspired bladder... mine. :) we were visiting Diana Kopecky, and we were washing up and taking our gowns off, and all of a sudden i needed to go to the bathroom... i thought to myself... "our house is only 10 minutes away, I'll just wait because we're almost late." but then I just had the strongest thought come to me... "I HAVE to go to the bathroom"... so I did... while I was in there a lady came up to use the bathroom and say that it was full and was walking away when she saw their name tags... she just sat down and said "I'm from the Bethesda ward in Maryland..." Come to find out, her daughter was in ICU, and her whole body had shut down after some chemo for Leukemia... she had been sleeping on the floor, and needed to find a place to stay, but couldn't afford a hotel... So we talked to Sister Leonard and she is living with her while her daughter (who is talking and off the respirator) recovers... but besides the fact that I needed to go to the bathroom, so did Lori, and she walked right past the bathroom in the ICU, to use the one in the infectious area... so her bladder was inspired too!!! :) Lori is the cutest lady, and calls us her law firm because she was reading off our names "Jenson, Smith and Spindler" and said that we sounded like one!! So she always calls us that...
The other miracle that I'll share... (there are lots more, but I'm almost out of time) is that we've been dropping a lot of people that aren't progressing/can't get in contact with, and then all these awesome people are coming out of the woodwork!!! The other day the phone rang, and it was a less active I've met probably 3 times, and she asked us if we could come over and talk to their family because they have been having a really really hard time. So we had an awesome lesson about getting along and such... and then they had FHE the next night!!!!! Woo-hoo!!! Only the mom is a member, and she hasn't been to church in years... She doesn't really know the doctrine either, because she's been la pretty much all her life... So on Sunday her and her boyfriend couldn't get off work, but a member of the ward picked up the kids and brought them to church!! Oh, but before that we had another lesson and talked about prayer, and the 14 yr old girl (who is definitely struggling) started listening, and then they all started drawing pictures of a board that we had brought for them so they could have the steps of prayer all over their house!!! I love that family!! They are also trying to quit smoking... so they are doing well!!! I love working with la's!!!
The last miracle that I just have to tell you about is that we had 6 investigators and 10 less actives at church this last week!!! Our attendance at church was at 120 instead of 80!!! It was crazy!!! One of the la's family we've been working with came to church, and we haven't even visited them in weeks!!! All by their little old selves!! AND our ward is getting to be so much more helpful!!! They all brought our investigators, and we have 4-5 dinner appointments every week this month!!!!! The miracles really area just pouring in!!!!
I'm so glad that i get to be a part of this great work!!! Watching people change their lives and see the happiness that comes as people follow the commandments... it just makes my heart sing!!! La la la la!! The miracles that happen make all the sad things seem small and make difficulties pretty much invisible!!! :) Missionary work is hard hard work... but the best work in the whole wide world... Well, I better run, but I hope that you all have an awesome week!!! Be sure to look for the miracles in your own life... I'm sure there are tons!!! You just have to look for them!!! Love ya!! :)
Love Sister Alex Smith :)
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