Just Do It!

So this has been a fairly crazy week with an interesting exchange, tons of time spent planning and making calls for our Zone Meeting tomorrow (which might be postponed due to the storm), a ward Trunk-or-treat party with a cornbread failure, a big disappointment and embarrassment from finding out during Ward Council that our newest solid investigator is actually a Less-Active Member, and time just flying by so fast that we often prayed to be most effective with the few short minutes we had.

Note from Editor: Map shows Sandy vs Dusty forecasted showdown on Thursday and Friday. She's no match for him!!

It was tough, too, because we have been working so hard and seeing almost no success coming from it, but it wasn't frustrating/discouraging, it was more just puzzling. Unfortunately we didn't even get to teach most of our investigators this week, so our lessons struggled a bit, but we did find that the Ward Council was very supportive of us in working on getting the Oval Chart running - really all the credit for that goes to our amazing Ward Mission Leader, Chris Norcross.

 

After an entire week of finding no new investigators - and the one we thought we found was actually a member - we were determined to not end that way. With only 45 minutes left on Sunday night (8:15) - during a time we intended on using to further our plans for the Zone Meeting - we decided to go out street contacting. As we got to the city's main intersection, Five Corners, we waited until we knew which way to go to find someone. Then as we decided to take a route that led a loop back to our apartment, we noticed 2 guys across the street. At first I thought to look to the side and avoid the awkwardness of calling out to them across traffic, but then I felt the need to open my mouth, and I told myself "just do it!" After asking if they had spoken with missionaries before, we no sooner found ourselves in a small conversation about their beliefs. Although the visit was brief, we gave them our number on Mormon.org cards and thanked them for a moment of their time, and even though we didn't really get to teach them, it gave us the confidence and energy to then call out to the next lady we saw just before she got into her car. We ended up teaching her for a while all about how the Gospel truly can bless her life. While we taught there were two men that were listening from a nearby upstairs apartment window and they came down to join our conversation. It was so sweet to see how their countenances changed over that half hour discussion which ended with a prayer, and a return appointment to teach her today at 12:00 :) It was such a sweet miracle, too, because she wanted to move back up here, but was just here last night to make that decision and after speaking with us, she really became interested in how the Gospel can truly bring her more happiness. After meeting with us last night, this self-described wild and faithless woman who believed more in science than in God's powers admitted that it was in God's divine plan for us to meet that night.

 

I am so grateful for the choice we made to go out and not let this last week end with another zero, and I am so grateful that we waited until the prompting of where to go, and then acted and opened our mouths. I find that in every case when I am faced with a decision that has the potential to do good, if I fail to act then I may never know what could have happened, but if I heed the prompting - no matter how small it may seem - I always find God's plans unfold as prayers are answered. I hope the next time you feel a prompting to do something that could yield positive results, that you will say to yourself, "Just Do It!", and then watch as you may be an instrument in the Lord's hands. :)

 

Note from Editor: As Miguel Cabrera no doubt would advise today, "Just swing!"

From New England with Love,

 

Elder Dustin Carr