Well, Jena was left with a BANG. Wednesday
was my last day there, and Elder Ostler and I led the Protestant Bible
Circle that we joined on the topic of "Who are the Mormons?" We were
happy to have that topic. We shared a powerpoint with basics about our
church and stereotypes/prejudices against our faith that are common in
the world. After going through these basics of the gospel there was a
good amount of time for a Q&A session. Ooooh did the questions come!
And OOOHHH did we hold our ground! This group of about 30 asked
questions ranging from baptisms for the dead to needing actual
Priesthood authority to the role of women in the church to anti-mormon
material found on the internet. These are legitimate concerns for them
to have because they do not have a temple nor claim authority. They are
confused about gender roles and many read information taken out of
context which is misconstrued to sound like the church of God can not be
His. There were two Pastors of two congregations there to "compete"
with the doctrine and state their falicious opinions drawn upon
doctrines that would be considered "pleasing unto men."
We
were attacked. But we did not argue. True doctrine was stated. We were
not apologetic for the truth. And just as we were advised in General
Conference multiple times, we were not afraid to offend by stating
truths that could potentially help each of those 30 persons eternally. A
moment of offense could turn into a lifetime of gratitude. We stayed
basic. The spirit of contention boiled in some of them, but not in us.
It was so cool. And the best part: the Spirit was there! Here is what we
did:
Started by singing I am a Child of God with everyone
Presented the powerpoint
Took the heated questions and answered them well, mostly with verses from the bible itself
after
being accused of basing our belief on ideologies and forgetting Christ
himself, we stepped off the stage of questions and showed the Video
"Because He Lives." Nothing more was said. The room was still. The
Spirit won.
That was such an exciting thing! I
wish I could describe the feelings of when we were able to bare sincere
testimony to them how the room was flooded with the Spirit. It was
surely a new experience for this group and I expect at least 5 in the
group to seriously sit down and find out what this church is all about.
It was so cool!!
Now to
Frankfurt. My new companion is Elder Roberts. He is from California but
lived in Kansas before coming on the mission. He is in his 7th transfer
(I am in my 15th...) and is already way fun to work with. Cool thing: he
is a concert pianist and can actually sing. My favorite part of
companionship study is that we actually sing songs well at the
beginning! Singing at all is a change from the last little while. Super
fun stuff.
It was sad to leave Jena but I
know that Frankfurt is the place to be right now. We have a baptismal
date with one of the most meek people I have ever met! Scarlett is a
very special person. She is one of those people who has a lot going for
her yet is humble enough to listen to this message of the gospel. She is
being greatly blessed for not having to have been brought to the depths
of humility to learn. What a special time it is when she is around!
We
will be searching for many new people to teach in efforts to show the
Frankfurt Zone that we need to increase our work! It will be fun but
challenging. I plan on following the advice of Elder Hales: do not walk;
RUN.
GO!
Oh. Next week Elder Benar is coming. And the mission is getting iPads. Talk about change, right?
Love,
Elder Jack
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