Here we are in my first ever branch on my mission. (Even though I guess we have one ward and one branch). It is definitely the place to be, though.
On Saturday Elder Gastelum and I were estimating on whether we needed to get gas or not. We decided we were safe. On Sunday night, we got back to the apartment with three miles of gas left in the tank. Today we woke up and went to get gas, which was three miles away. It was a slightly nervous ride, but we made it safe. Despite watching the 'low fuel' light count down to 0 as we pulled into the gas station.
One awesome opportunity we had today was that all the missionaries got to meet up in a couple groups to go and see The Lamb of God, which is a recorded concert that is in theaters. Someone in the mission presidency in the other mission knows one of the producers somehow, and since all the theaters in Vegas are in casinos, they asked and were able to get special permission for us to all go and watch it in one of the church buildings. It was really powerful. It made me think about what the apostles long ago would have felt as they testified of Christ. "Look! Here He is! Can't you see?" It would have been so frustrating to understand Christ so well and to have so many not believe. But I think it made our calling as missionaries make more sense to me to. All we do is point people to Christ.
On one of our first days in the branch, we visited a member family, and he asked if we'd been vaccinated for COVID yet. We said no, and he told us, "I can take you tomorrow if you want!" He is actually the manager of a bunch of the giant convention centers here in Las Vegas, and he picked us up and gave us the VIP experience as he took us to his special parking, walked us past all the lines, and had an employee assigned to take us all the way through. So, we are part-way vaccinated now! Just have to go back in a few weeks for the next shot. As I was getting my shot, some members of the military who were there for the same thing that were members came up and started talking to me. The nurse asked, "When did you meet each other?" And we answered, "Oh, just right now." That is one of the coolest things ever about being a missionary. You just form and instant connection with people.
As I have been a missionary, Facebook has evolved so much. It is amazing how it has grown as a tool for the work of God. We reach out to a lot of people, and sometimes they respond, and sometimes they don't. We sent a friend request to a nice looking guy, which he accepted. We asked how he was doing and if he was from Vegas. He told us how long he had lived here, and we responded with where we are from. We then asked what he did for work, and he just said, "It's the weekend now, so if you want to call me sometime we'll talk." We suggested a time, and he said, "Actually, just come by on Saturday morning." We got his address, and he lives just down the street! His assigned ward goes to our building! The conversation was seriously about three messages long before he invited us to his house. We went over and met him, and he told us his story and about his friends who are members of the church. He thought they must have sent us his way, which is why he invited us over. Anyway, he wants to come visit church and we are visiting him again soon! He was a total stranger on Facebook, and now we are friends and teaching him! It amazes me how ready some people are. We just have to look and reach out.
We had another big miracle when someone called us and said he is a member from Salt Lake and he was in town visiting his family. He talked to someone in the park, and asked him if he could have two of his friends bring over the Book of Mormon, and the man said yes! So then he called us, gave us the man's address and phone number, and told us to bring him a Book of Mormon. Now, that is some member missionary work. We went to the address we received and were welcomed in by a young man with two little kids who had recently had a small child pass away. We gave him the Book of Mormon, and we all shed a few tears as we talked about the challenges he has been going through and as we promised that he would see his child again. This humble man was so desperately in need of some sort of connection to God, and the bravery of one member who shared the gospel with a stranger was what changed a life and touched a soul. The man thanked us for coming and invited us to come back.
Whenever I can catch a glimpse of the importance of the gospel, it just blows me away. The purpose of our life is to learn, have families and joy, and become like God. There is nothing that should cloud our lens of eternal focus, but sometimes we get worried about little things. However, every now and then you get a split second where the dots connect and things line up and you see things from God's perspective. And then you remember why this is so important! So, I guess that is the task before us. To remember.
'Til we meet,
Elder Harris
No comments:
Post a Comment