Iowa City Week #7: Season of the Harvest

Wow, this week was probably the best one I've had since I have been in Iowa City. Of course we had our trials, as is typical in any missionary's week, but the blessings we have been graciously given outweigh the struggles. Certainly one of the greatest events of our week was one of the best moments of my whole entire mission so far: witnessing Barbara's baptism in Kirksville! Yes, by the grace of God we were blessed to get permission to attend and find a ride down to Missouri this past Saturday, and it was one of the happiest moments of my life to finally witness the fruits of my labors with my own eyes. Not that I necessarily need to see the outward results of the work I have done here, for every missionary goes through that, but I cannot deny that getting to attend was a great blessing for me. What mattered most from that is knowing that no matter how much persecution one may face as they share the Restored Gospel, at least someone will be willing to listen and accept the truths you hold so dear. As a result, they find a degree of happiness they have never felt before, and one that they do not want to go away. That's why I am so glad that Barbara made the decision to be baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for even though she will still face trials in her life, I have great faith that the things we taught her will provide the Heaven-sent comfort and faith she deserves to endure. I love and miss her, and I hope she enjoys the blessings that will come into her life for making this monumental decision.

Elder Long, Elder Mattice (the trainee who replaced me) and me with Barbara before her baptism. Being able to witness that ordinance was one of the greatest blessings of my life, and I give praise to my God for leading her down this blessed path she has taken.

As for things that took place this week in Iowa City, Elder Scott and I have been hard at work to continue to refine our companionship and remain diligent in our efforts to preach the Gospel here. As a result, we had a very busy week, and one full of many interesting and awesome miracles. For one thing, we got a new investigator out of the blue who referred himself on mormon.org, knows an incredible amount of info about Church doctrine and has a desire to be baptized. It remains to be seen as to whether or not he will progress this week, but hopefully that all goes well. 

You never know who you may find at the Iowa City Ped Mall.

Otherwise, we have found a lot of many interesting people throughout the week such as an elderly man who sincerely desires to quit drinking and come unto Christ, an agnostic student at University of Iowa who is very intrigued by the story of Joseph Smith, along with a man who is a member of a minuscule break-off of the Church known as the Strangites. Basically, they were a small group led by a man named James Strang in the Nauvoo Period before the Saints began their trek to Utah; today there are only about 200 left, and the main difference between us is that they couple Jewish practices such as Saturday Sabbath observance. It has been very interesting meeting with him and discussing his background, but he came to Sacrament Meeting yesterday so hopefully we will help him to come to a knowledge of the full truth. We also set a baptismal date with Mark for December 6; at this point we are unsure as to whether or not he will follow through on this, but we will continue to meet with him and help him to find out for himself if the Church is the right path for him.

Well, that was my week! I hope you all have a most excellent Halloween this weekend!

Halloween decorating? You're doing it right.

Scripture of the Week: Doctrine and Covenants 136:28-29 (The Lord wants you to have joy, so whatever you may be going through, heed to the counsel He gives in these verses so that you might be able to retain a spirit of joy within yourself.)


Missionary Advice: This Work isn't just about finding, teaching and baptizing people who have no knowledge of the Restored Gospel. What about those who do have such a knowledge but have fallen on the wayside? Reach out to those you know whose testimonies have perhaps slipped a little bit, and show your love to them in any way the Spirit impresses you to do so.

Say hello to Iowa City Phil, the groundhog!

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