Family,
Well transfers are this week and... I'm leaving. So is my companion. We are getting doubled out and Serenada is getting closed. Elder Roland is getting doubled in again, into the Georgetown Ward and is going to teach the investigators here in Serenada until they don't have any and then he is going to mainly focus in the Georgetown Ward's area. So the Georgetown missionaries are getting double out as well. That means that out of 4 missionaries in Georgetown we are all pretty much leaving. It was very unexpected from all of us. Especially because we had an amazing week last week. But President Jones knows what he is doing. I won't know where I am going until Thursday so I will let you know when I can... It is crazy how this is happening.
President, while he was talking to my companion and then our district leader (who is in Georgetown) told us why and what is going to happen. The reason why he is taking us out and closing Serenada is because the members are not focused on missionary work right now and they could care less about missionaries. So he has talked to the stake president who suggested the same thing and that if Serenada wants missionaries then they will prove it by being missionaries themselves. It's tough to leave this area because we are finally getting the work going, and the ward somewhat interested about missionary work. Plus there are so many members here that are opening up to missionary work because we just serve them. But I'm super excited for my next area. Even though I don't really feel like I'm done here. But, the Lord knows best...
As for our last week in Serenada - it was legit. We taught like 7 other lessons and found 4 new investigators.
We are still working with Charles. We invited him to church on Sunday and he turned us down, but we got a concern out of him. We knew there was something that was holding him back from really reading the Book of Mormon and praying about it. Guess what it was? It was the fact that it talks about horses in the Book of Mormon, and he is convinced that there weren't any horses at that time. What a crazy thing to be stuck on right? Well we overcame that by just saying, "If you pray and Heavenly Father tells you it is true will you believe there were horses back then?" He said "Yes" and that he will truly read and pray about it. So now, Elder Roland will work with him until he either is baptized or dropped.
Also we found a family of 5. Their names are Michael and Cindy and their kids. We found them by talking to her outside and then going back and setting up a time to meet with them. When we went back, we only had the chance to teach him. We taught him The Restoration and it was a great lesson. The Spirit was there guiding us and he felt it. He accepted a Book of Mormon and also the invitation to pray about it. He is a great guy that will read and pray and receive an answer that it is true.
There is also a new move-in that was a referral from other missionaries. She has been taught for about 5 months now and loves the church, loves the people, loves the teachings but is having a hard time with one of the most important things: The Book of Mormon. She doesn't have a testimony of it. But we helped her move in on Saturday and talked with her for a little bit about it. She is a wonderful lady and wants to be baptized, but we emphasized how important it is to gain a personal testimony of the Book of Mormon first. I think she is going to be a lot of stress on Elder Roland and his new companion in the future. She just moved into an excommunicated member's home that is very anti-Mormon. It is a terrible situation that she is living in and has already been talked to by this ex-member. She is going to be a lot of work, and it will be hard to get her baptized. But she is really loving everything.
The peak/climax of our week was on Sunday night. We had an appointment with a family of 3 that we found the same way we found Michael and Cindy. Like exactly the same way. So we honestly doubted them remembering our appointment, because we called the night before and left a message and we didn't hear back from them. But we went hoping they remembered. Well, we were humbled because they remembered and they were ready. We had one of the most amazing lessons we have had in this area with them. The Spirit was so strong and I don't think we have been guided like that before. Everything that he said or asked just pointed to them being ready to hear the Gospel and that they were going to accept it. We taught them the first half of the Plan of Salvation because in the beginning we were talking to them and he said "I know God has a plan for us." We jumped on that very fast. They accepted a Book of Mormon and the challenge to read and pray from it. They even said that they really wanted to find out if it was true. It was amazing of how just one simple hour long lesson that goes amazingly well can change an okay week, or even a bad week, into an amazing week. We set up a return appointment for next week. Elder Roland will take care of that as well. They are an amazing family with a 9 year old daughter. Their names are Scott and Joanna.
Great week last week like I said, but my work here is done, I guess. It's tough but I'm over it.
Now Dad regarding homesickness or whatever you want to call it. The holidays and pictures and what not and stuff like that don't make me homesick. They make me want to work harder - honestly. It's just that in an area like this, when we aren't having success, it makes it difficult for us. Both Elder Roland and I have noticed that and that is why we try to work our hardest every single day. My commitment to the Lord is 100%, there isn't anywhere else I would rather be then on a mission right now. I love it, and I hate it sometimes, that's how a mission is. Like you say, "Trust in the Lord."
Have a good week. Love you all.
Elder Harvey
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