Familia!
Man, has it been a crazy week. Crazy, but good. So, Wednesday I finished packing all of my things and then headed to Tempe for the transfer meetings. They like to make it a huge surprise so that nobody knows where they are going until their name is announced. So, President Howes stands up and says, "Serving as Zone Leaders in Casa Grande Zone is Elder Wheeler and Elder Jurgensmeier...." ...so, I didn't go too far haha. I'm not serving in Casa Grande, but I'm serving in a little town called Coolidge that is about 10 minutes away from Casa Grande. The outskirts of Coolidge reminds me a lot of the country area where we live. Homes are very spread out and it is all farm land. So far, it has been super nice, but last night talking to a member he said that Coolidge is one of the hottest areas in Arizona... Its like the phrase, "Go big or go home," and I'm sure not going home, so I guess this is my only other option. 120 degree days...sounds like paradise to me... haha
So Coolidge has been pretty interesting so far. My second day here we were driving around and heard something hit the side of our car. Some guy shot at us with a BB Gun haha, so we just decided to keep driving, figured he wasn't too interested... haha. Other than that though, the people are all pretty nice. A couple of nights ago, we had a really cool experience where we were able to show people that we are actual people and don't just walk around all day reading the scriptures as many people think. We were walking around and there was a family playing basketball out in the streets and then their wives/girlfriends were just hanging out watching. We walked over and started talking to the girls a little bit about Easter and then a few of the guys came over. We asked them if they would mind if we shared an Easter message with them and they all just looked at us and said, "Nah, we are all Christian, we know about Christ. We are fine, no worries." We just continued to talk to them and then the rest of them finished with their game of basketball and came over as well. The one who won the game was trash talking all the rest of them so I was like, "Hey we should play a game of one on one. First one to five wins." So, in my shirt, tie, and church shoes I played this guy. I ended up winning, but after the game when they all gathered together they started asking a little more about what we were doing out here walking around. I told them how we had normal lives before, but for two years we had come out to share a message. That God has a specific plan for each and every one of us and that He wants us all to return and live with Him again. I testified that the message we share will help each of them know how they can return and live with God again and asked if we could come back again to share it. This time they all said, "Ya, come on over. We are home every night after five. Any night you say, we will be here." It was awesome to see how important it is to just be yourself. We have each been given specific talents and attributes in our lives, and we are given them to use them. God doesn't plan for us to just keep them ourselves, but use them to help others. It was awesome to see how as I was able to relate to something so close to them, like basketball, they were able to completely open up and invite us into their home.
We have also been having a lot of success, especially with one of our investigators named Lorie. Lorie was on date for baptism about a month ago. The missionaries before didn't really prep her as good as they should of for her baptismal interview and she ended up not passing. She took that as a sign that God was telling her that this was not the right thing to do and so she quit meeting with the missionaries. Well, this last week we were finally able to catch her at home. One night we were riding our bikes around and the thought came to Elder Wheeler that we should go and visit Lorie. We got to her house and knocked on the door a couple of times, but no one was there. As we turned around to leave, she came walking around the corner with her two daughters and her son. Once again it amazes me how God truly does put us in the perfect circumstances to find His prepared children. We were able to sit down and have a really powerful lesson with her. She told us that after that interview, things just continued to get worse and worse. One night she finally decided that she needed to fall to her knees and have a conversation with God. She said that she prayed for about an hour and that she just told God that she was tired, that she couldn't do it anymore without His help. After that, things started to get better, and each day things just improved. A couple of days before we had come, she opened up the Bible. She said that as she was reading, she felt as if she should open up to the page that her finger was on. As she opened it up and read what was on that page, the spirit really testified to her what she needed to do. She told us that she knew that she would be baptized and soon. It is just amazing to see the big picture of things. We are promised that as we do missionary work, as long as we open our mouths, just do a little bit of action, God will make the rest of it right. No matter how many mistakes we make, God will always provide a way for someone to come into his fold. The missionaries before hand probably could have done a little better of job preparing this lady, and all of these problems would have been avoided, but God knew Lorie's heart, and he knew that she had a strong desire to follow Christ. He intervened in her life just enough to show her what the right path was to follow, and he will do the same with each of us. As Christ teaches, even if only one sheep wanders, he will go out looking for it. I know this to be true. I know that our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love us so much that they will do everything that they can to help us return and live with them again. It has been amazing to see how they have guided Lorie's life so far and it will be amazing to see where they will take her.
I also love this time of year, where we are able to look back and realize all that Christ did for us. I am so Grateful for Christ, and everything He has done for me. I know that He lives. I know that He is the head of the church, and He has called a prophet on the earth today. I am so excited to listen to conference once again and hear exactly what God wants us to know.
I love you all, and I hope everything is well in your lives.
Con Amor,
Elder Jurgensmeier
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