Elder Colin White—Letter from Edenton, NC 5/16/15

 

Dear People Out West,

The South is very hot and it is very humid. It's almost as if when you inhale, it is more water vapor than air that you breathe in. But I won't complain. At least I'm not close to the equator where it's like that year round. 

This week we went to go teach a less-active member who's famous line before he went into the baptismal font was, "Good bye, Old Timothy," and when he came out of the font "Hello, New Timothy." We got to his house and he wasn't home, but just then we turned around and saw an older ratty black convertible with a surfboard sticking out of it, and there in the passenger seat was the guy we were there to teach. He had hitchhiked home with this other guy who spends all the time he can surfing out on the outer banks, who just happens to live really close to him. Timothy told us that we needed to teach him, so we talked to him for a minute or two and asked if he'd like to join us. He did and now he is a new investigator via member referral (which just in case you didn't know referrals from members are the best way to find new people to teach)!

This town has a very large Episcopal population, most likely because of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, which is one of the most historic churches in the country. It's over 300 years old and we know many people who attend church there. We were invited by some of the people we know who sing in their choir to come to a Inter-faith choir music-based service thing on Sunday night, and it was very interesting. The moment we walked in everyone was looking at us thinking, "Wait, what those are those Mormon missionaries we see all the time doing here??" The service was very interesting, complete with a fugue in G minor by Bach on the church’s old pipe organ, and the reading of rote prayers and other various chants by the choir and congregation. After the service everyone was joking to us asking if we were joining their church, but then something really interesting happened. One guy we know us introduced us to all of those people, and then proceeded to tell them how great he thinks we are, and told every single one of them that they should invite us over to teach them, and then he continued to tell them about the really great enlightening things that he has learned from us and that it would bless their lives too. If he has learned anything --it is most definitely not from us, but from the Spirit. It truly is the Holy Ghost that is the real teacher of the Gospel. We just have to be worthy and be there to say what He needs us to say and be humble enough to listen to the Spirit to know what to say. 

My most favorite and special thing that happened this week was the story that a less-active family told us about what happened when we left after giving their very sick daughter a blessing. Their daughter is in her 20's and has a 2 year-old son who is a pretty crazy little kid. While we gave her the blessing he sat quietly on her lap, and then later she was sitting at the kitchen table and he walked up to her, climbed up on the chair next to her and then reached out his little two year-old hands and placed them on her head, closed his eyes, and bowed his head, and then he just stood there with his hands on his mommy's head silently for a while and then took away his hands and said, "Okay Mommy," smiled and hugged her, then walked away into the other room. Every time we visit their home the little two-year old comes up to us and begs us to read the word book with him. By “word book” he is always referring to The Book of Mormon. I think if we were all as excited to read the scriptures as this two-year old, we as a whole, would be a happier people.

Well it's getting hotter here and I think I will maybe be staying here for a while, but we will see at transfers on June 1^st. Have a blessed week y'all!

-- -Elder White