Letter #67

(ryan just found out he was accepted to BYU-Hawaii for January 2013) we are so blessed! Merry Christmas! - Darci

Hello hello!

This has been a great week; Elder Mok and I were so blessed! It is so crazy how whenever there is a new companion, or a new missionary the lord blesses you like crazy! Not only did we find a few new investigators but also we were able to get back in contact with some of the people that we have talked to previously. It was really a great week.

So to start things off we ran into two people that we had contacted a long time ago! And this time they were able to come and meet with us! One of them was a man that I met almost a year ago, who had us help him translate some things but as soon as we talked with him about church became very uncomfortable and left. This time he listened to our whole lesson, asked very sincere questions, and came to church on Sunday!!!! I WAS SO SURPRISED! It was a night and day difference. It is all about the preparation and the seed planting I tell you. This man is a great example of that. The first time that we met him, it was just not the right time for him to hear about the gospel in his life. But, it only took a year for him to change. I don’t know what happened to him in his life that made him want to change but whatever it is I am so grateful! We also had man show up to church on Sunday that was meeting with elder Faulkner a long time ago and even had a baptismal date at one point. He was then arrested for sleeping on a park bench and had several other things come up, so he slowly lost contact with the missionaries. He showed up on Sunday and stayed for all three hours, and said that he will come again this next week! Very cool, I love the reactivation of investigators.

A few weeks ago I ran into a man on the street named Henry. He was a very interesting man. I could tell from speaking with him that he was a very deep thinker. He came and met with us one day and told us a little bit more about his background. He said that for most of his life he has believed that there is a God but has not known which church is true. He told us that he has researched many churches and has come to the conclusion that the people on this earth are very confused and there will not be a true church on the earth again. He said that he will give us 8 times to meet with him and teach him about why our church is true. I was more then willing to accept this challenge. This last time that we met with him, he promised that he would read half of the book of Mormon before the next time that he comes! Our mouths dropped when he made this commitment. I am so excited to meet with him again, and see how he is doing. I know that if he is not only reading, but praying as well he will find that answer that he is looking for! He would make such a strong convert. We also received two referrals this last week that were both very promising! The first one was a man that was having family problems. He is a very busy man and it has been hard for him to balance work life with family life. One day when he was feeling very depressed, thinking about ways that he can improve, two of the Spanish speaking missionaries knocked on his door. Even though he did not understand a single word that they said, he let them in because it felt right. They shared a message. He did not understand a single word but it felt right. The desire in this man to change is so pure and so sincere. Such evidence that heavenly father is really listening to all of his children. Even the ones that are not praying because they don’t know how or what it really can do. He still listens and wants to help those people as well. That is so touching to me.

Christmas is coming! I am so lucky to be in NYC! The Christmas spirit here is so strong! When you go downtown you cannot help but singing a couple Christmas songs and making a donation to the closest Santa! Yesterday our mission had our Christmas party! It was a lot of fun to see old friends and eat delicious food. But, my favorite part was the talk that our mission president gave. He read a story about a young shepherd that in my opinion captured the attributes of the savior perfectly! The spirit was so strong. I am so grateful to be on a mission! When you are not surrounded by presents, and family members all you can really do is think about Christ and the amazing sacrifice that he made for us! His whole life was purely for us... there were not many things that he did for himself. I am so grateful! And the best way I can express my gratitude is by sharing with others! Not only on my mission, but also for the rest of my life.

Elder Barton