Saturday, 27 April
I feel good. Today was a good day. First, it
was our P-Day today, with everything that comes with it. During the
afternoon we went to Szolnok. There at the Hozam Klub we attended E’s and
E’s baptisms. I baptized E and Elder Herd performed the ordinance for E.
I felt clean in the font. I know the ordinance was for E, but that was
quite possibly the cleanest and best I’ve felt on my Mission. While there in
Szolnok I saw a lot of familiar faces. Three people I taught were there,
and I recognized all the members as well. G was one of the three and
expressed his positive feelings about the baptism and the possibility of him
being baptized soon. Z is also on baptismal date again. We got back
later in the evening. My miracle today is that I finally got to see the
ordinance of one of the people I taught getting baptized.
Sunday, 28 April
We had church this morning and afternoon. A came to
the first hour. Afterwards we met with N, a woman from Angolora.
However, because she lives far away she said she can only meet once or twice a
month. Later we met with I. While we spent the time talking about
the index, how to use the footnotes, and answering questions about what she
read, we did discover at the end that her marriage and family relationships are
struggling. So, next time will all be about the family. My miracle today
is all the help I’ve received to help me better understand the
scriptures. I’ve always had them available to read, I’ve been taught how
to use the notes and other resources, attended Sunday School, and been taught
in Seminary.
Monday 29 April
This morning we had our first Staff Meeting in a
while. We still haven’t had a Correlation Meeting at all this
transfer. During the day we had some mildly successful streeting and made
many phone calls to fill up our week. We’re going to get quite
busy. Also, with transfers coming up next week my work in the office is
going to begin increasing again. I need my computer! In the evening we
went with a few other Missionaries to the V family’s home for dinner.
They are a very fun and kind family. Their massage chair worked wonders
on my back for some fifteen minutes. I vote that we should get one for
the office. That would very much be loved, used, and appreciated.
My miracle for today is that E from Nyiregyhaza stopped by the office today.
It was great to see and talk to her. It was fun to be around her in
Nyiregyhaza, especially since she spoke English when I didn’t speak
Hungarian. (She and V were the only two members there who could really
speak English, so I could always talk to and understand them the most as a new
Missionary).
Tuesday, 30 April
One cancellation and two dogs today. We met with Z,
a woman from Angolora. R came to the program to help. While Z is
from English Class, the entire program was gospel-centered. We spent our
time together talking about families, the importance of them, the
ever-increasing need to protect them, and our relationship with God. We
already have another program set-up for Friday. We them met with I
again. We focused everything on the family. We read the
Proclamation together along with a few verses out of the Book of Mormon.
I committed to read the entire “For Strength of Youth” as well as “True to the
Faith” by Monday. It looks like she’ll be learning about all the
commandments twice this weekend as they are all discussed in each book. My
miracle today is that a member who’s been in-active for twelve years decided to
just swing by the Mission Home today. I got to talk to him for an hour,
give him the latest Liahona, and he said he will try to come to Stake
Conference this weekend. Also, as a sub-miracle: it has been several
weeks since we have met with M. However, I’ve been calling him
consistently each week, and he’s always said he’s been reading and
praying. Recently he just said that he has finished reading the entire
Book of Mormon and the index, and is starting over so that he can understand it
better!
Wednesday, 1 May (Labor Day in Hungary, and 50 Days Left)
This morning as we went to the Mission Home, there was a
woman waiting outside the door. When I asked if I could help with
anything, she asked if we could meet. So, we did. As soon as we got
inside and sat down, E began bearing her testimony about the truthfulness and
divine origin of both the Church and the Book of Mormon. She said she had
attended church once and met with the Missionaries back in 2009, but didn’t
have a good feeling, which she says she knows now is because she was not
following God and was being chastised by the Spirit. She said she knows
every other church is missing something and that this is the only true Church
and that she would like to do whatever it takes to be baptized into it, as soon
as possible. We met with E for about an hour. She already lives the Word
of Wisdom and Law of Chastity, and strives to be modest. She has read
through the Book of Mormon several times (straight through, cover-to-cover),
and has highlighted and marked almost every page. Throughout the entire
program she was quoting scriptures and referencing stories and verses in the
Book of Mormon. She also said a beautiful opening prayer. We are
meeting her again on Friday and she said she will come to Stake Conference on
Sunday. At the end she asked for a couple copies of the Book of Mormon
that she could give to share with her friends. It was quite a miraculous
and amazing experience. Later I received a phone call from Elder Miller in
Szolnok. Last Saturday I wrote that at E’s baptism, G was there.
Jumping back to that, after the baptisms, G actually came into the changing
room and asked if we could talk. For around ten minutes we talked about
the baptism and the spirit that was felt. The conversation concluded with
G saying he thought he should and would like to be baptized sometime, which I
told him I agreed and that he should take that opportunity as soon as he was
ready. Afterwards I told this to Elder Miller, who was surprised as
earlier that very week they had invited Gabor to be baptized and he said he
didn’t think he would ever be baptized. However, Elder Miller and I
agreed that they should ask again. Now, jumping back to today’s phone call;
they did indeed ask again, and G indeed wants to get baptized. He has
accepted June 15th, the last Saturday before I return home, as his
baptismal date. The Spirit truly did touch him and change his desires.
Now it is time for today’s miracle. While either one of these two events
could easily qualify as a miracle, I would like to add a miracle that required
additional reflection. For today’s miracle I have chosen the theme of one
of President Eyring’s talks that was included in the First Presidency Message
at the front of a Liahona. In his message, President Eyring talked about
how the Lord will put people in our path, or put us in their path, who are
prepared to receive the gospel. However, in large part this depends on
our mind and our heart being prepared and willing to share the gospel in the
given situation. That’s what happened today. I believe one part
that led to the encounters was prayer, as both encounters were prayed for, and
miraculously they were prayed for by both the investigator and the Missionary.
We prayed this morning for our investigators to prepare themselves for baptism,
as well as specifically that we could somehow find a new golden investigator
today; E prayed that she’d be able to find us and to make the right choice; and
G prayed to know if this Church is true. All three prayers were heard and
answered, and each one of us was given the things that we had prepared our
minds and our hearts for.
Thursday, 2 May
One cancellation and one dog. The intercom to the
front door broke, so now it is much less convenient to try to let people in to
the Mission Home. We had our last District Meeting of the transfer.
We then went out and met with F. We found out that he met with the
missionaries and was on a baptismal date in the past, but never was baptized
because he refused to attend Church. He told us that he suffers from
depression, paranoia, anxiety, and several phobias, and that he can’t come to Church
because of them. In the evening we went on splits with members
again. Elder Loveday met with P and they talked about the
commandments. I met with I and L again. We focused our discussion
on the Restoration and Book of Mormon. After their two programs we taught
English Class which went well. When we returned to our apartment, one of
the first things that happened was that the handle to the faucet of the kitchen
sink snapped off in the “on” position. So, we had to turn the water to
our apartment off until someone comes tomorrow night to fix it. My
miracle of the day is that everything is breaking (the intercom, faucet, my
computer), but they are all temporal and can all be fixed.
Friday, 3 May
Another dog and cancellation. This week members
have also been faulty with programs, two calling and cancelling and three never
even showing up this week (to programs). This morning we met with E,
which was the highlight of the day. She had already read both Liahona’s
since Wednesday, and she brought questions. We had a very spiritual discussion
with her. The Pest Sisters were there for their district meeting, so I
briefly grabbed the three of them and pulled them into the room to introduce
them to each other. E is still firm on coming to Stake Conference.
She’s said that she’d really like to be baptized as soon as possible. We
went over everything that needs to happen before a baptism, and while she
wouldn’t mind it being sooner, we have chosen June 1st as a date;
four weeks from tomorrow. Huzzah! In the early afternoon Tech
Support called. They said that they had never sent the device we’ve been
waiting for as they had found another way to fix my computer. However,
they forgot to call and tell me a week ago… So, I’ve begun fixing
it. Most of the files have been restored and just need to be organized
now. It should be up and going by tomorrow. We had our second program
with Z. R came again. Today Z just needed someone to listen to
her. So we did. There was hardly any lesson. But, it worked.
By the end she felt much better and is, like E, coming to Stake Conference. In
the evening the Landlady came with a plumber to fix the kitchen sink. It
is now fixed and we have running water again. We were unable to visit the
H family again as their other child has become sick. Today’s daily
miracle is E and the power and role The Book of Mormon has had on her and in
her conversion.
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