Miracle Week

So this past week was great!! We are back up to 14 lessons a week! Hurray!

Sister Osa and I have been seeing so much success in this area. We have 4 progressing investigators right now, and we could not be more excited for them. 

Last week I mentioned finding people we were meant to find, and to show that God really is in the details of our lives, I have a big giant miracle story.

So there we were, Sister Osa and I, looking at our planners and deciding where to go. And Sister Osa was all "let's go back to the new movie ins in 8th ward" and I was like "Okay" and so we DID. And we went to the first house, and guess what? They weren't home. BUT THEN, we talked to these little girls riding their bikes and asked them if they knew anyone we could teach, and do you know what they said?!!!? No. So after that, we went down the street to the people who just moved in across from the Hamiltons (I love the Hamiltons) and we knocked on the door and lots of dogs were barking and the door opens and this super happy man on crutches that looks like Dad comes out and after wrestling with his crutches and the dogs he introduces himself and tells us that he's a Christian and he's spending a couple days with his niece and her family. And we were all "Oh awesome!" and so we all start talking and he tells us about how he's been on a 5 week motorcycle trip from Tennessee to Alaska back to Tennesse with his friend. On his way back home, coming through Utah a deer comes out in front of him and it wrecks his bike a little, but he comes out of this whole thing with a leg injury and the bike still works, it didn't go down at all. So we were all "Woah, you should totally be dead right now!" and he was all "I KNOW!" so after we see his bike and talk for a while he says "So, tell me one thing you want me to know about your religion" and we start teaching him about the Restoration. After a minute I asked if we could have a lesson right there on the porch since he was by himself, and he was all about it! So we sat down with him and talked for maybe 2 hours. During the lesson the family came home and sat in on part of it. He said that we could come back the next day and we did, and sat for another 2 1/2 hours talking about the Plan of Salvation. He had already starting the material we gave him the day before and had a lot of deeply thought out questions. I don't know if I've ever met anybody so prepared to hear the gospel than this man on my entire mission. He agreed to let us send a referral to missionaries in his area and we gave him a couple articles in the Ensign and a triple combination that was in our apartment. 

The only way we can be successful is if we have the Spirit with us to guide our words and actions. We had no idea what this man needed to hear from us, but the Spirit did. And because we listened, we found him, and answered his questions, and were able to introduce him to the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. He didn't know anything about Latter-day Saints other than the crazy false stories you hear all the time. You know, the polygamy, horns and tails, cult kind of crazy stories.

Then we were able to bring Lexi and her Dad to a baptism that the Portuguese Elders in our district were having on Saturday morning (we had to wear headphones but I think she still liked it) and she came to Church with us yesterday and brought her cousin with her. She liked the ward and the young women in her class. This has been a wonderful week. 

I haven't crashed my bike for a long time! I haven't melted from the blistering heat!

Last miracle of the week (at least for Mom and Dad): I've started playing piano! And I'm actually not that bad at it! Woo, I have a talent now.

Sorry that I haven't been sending anybody personal emails. I promise I'll start again. Someday. 

Love you! Have a happy week!

Sister Hinkle