Connor!!!! I love you, Bro!!!! CONGRATULATIONS ON THE MISSION CALL TO CHICAGO!!!!! Your experiences are going to be different than mine, but I know that it will be perfect for you. Elder Nielson shared with me that we are often called to a mission president and his wife, as well as the area that we serve. I know that I was supposed to serve with President and Sister Simmons here in Malaysia. I love being a missionary! I love my family! I love the Gospel!!!
With that said, we had such an amazing week here! I am so grateful for the miracles that we are blessed with daily.
Has the day of miracles ceased?? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Elder S and I have tried to do all we can to continue to repent, consecrate ourselves, and focus on connecting people with heaven. Each day is filled with spiritual experiences, joy, sometimes tears, and always gratitude. I love being a missionary. I love serving the Lord. I love sharing my testimony with the people all around me.
Has the day of miracles ceased?? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Elder S and I have tried to do all we can to continue to repent, consecrate ourselves, and focus on connecting people with heaven. Each day is filled with spiritual experiences, joy, sometimes tears, and always gratitude. I love being a missionary. I love serving the Lord. I love sharing my testimony with the people all around me.
One of the most amazing, humbling experiences happened last Friday afternoon. We received a text from an investigator who praised us, then eventually apologized saying he didn't want to meet again, because, he said, we don't believe in God or Christ. It was a bit of a shock because the last lesson we had with him was purely focused on the Atonement and coming unto Christ.
I gave him a call, prayed, bore testimony, and asked if we could come over and talk. When we arrived at his house, there was another lady there waiting for us. She was his English teacher and the pastor's daughter. I immediately thought, "Oh no, this is going to turn into an argument that will not invite the Spirit." We introduced ourselves, then we sat down and asked about his questions and concerns. He explained some things he'd read about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith, then he asked us to share.
We prayed, reestablished our focus on bringing everyone closer to Christ, and retaught the Restoration. The Spirit was powerful. I know that Heavenly Father gave us the gift of tongues, because Elder S and I had never taught so simply, clearly, and powerfully. When we finally got to the first vision, the pastor's daughter's eyes were filled with tears. We bore sincere testimony of our Savior, the Restoration, the Book of Mormon, and a modern day prophet. We invited our investigator to read and pray to find out for himself, but he is not longer interested in learning more.
The pastor's daughter interrupted us and went on to explain that she did know understand what Mormons believe. She had many misconceptions about our religion and beliefs of God, Christ, and the Holy Ghost. She asked for a Book of Mormon and told us she would read, pray, and wanted to meet again. Although I was sad about our investigator's change of heart, I was amazed that the Lord blessed us with an opportunity to meet with somebody we could have never contacted on our own.
I know this is the Lord's work, and I know the only way we can help people is by testifying of Him with the Spirit.
I gave him a call, prayed, bore testimony, and asked if we could come over and talk. When we arrived at his house, there was another lady there waiting for us. She was his English teacher and the pastor's daughter. I immediately thought, "Oh no, this is going to turn into an argument that will not invite the Spirit." We introduced ourselves, then we sat down and asked about his questions and concerns. He explained some things he'd read about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith, then he asked us to share.
We prayed, reestablished our focus on bringing everyone closer to Christ, and retaught the Restoration. The Spirit was powerful. I know that Heavenly Father gave us the gift of tongues, because Elder S and I had never taught so simply, clearly, and powerfully. When we finally got to the first vision, the pastor's daughter's eyes were filled with tears. We bore sincere testimony of our Savior, the Restoration, the Book of Mormon, and a modern day prophet. We invited our investigator to read and pray to find out for himself, but he is not longer interested in learning more.
The pastor's daughter interrupted us and went on to explain that she did know understand what Mormons believe. She had many misconceptions about our religion and beliefs of God, Christ, and the Holy Ghost. She asked for a Book of Mormon and told us she would read, pray, and wanted to meet again. Although I was sad about our investigator's change of heart, I was amazed that the Lord blessed us with an opportunity to meet with somebody we could have never contacted on our own.
I know this is the Lord's work, and I know the only way we can help people is by testifying of Him with the Spirit.
We had another miracle while I was on exchanges with Elder B. We had incredible studies, and when we went out, I knew we were going to have the perfect day. Immediately, we saw someone waiting in their car outside the house and started sharing with them. They were so excited to learn! The rest of the day was filled with open hearts and people willing to try and come closer to the Savior through the Restored Gospel. My favorite part of the exchange was teaching one of our younger investigators about the Atonement, sacrifice, and faith. We were able to share Jacob 2:18-19:
18 But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God.
Our view on how we prioritize our lives is completely different from the world. We believe that as we put Christ first, and stay strong to the truths that have been revealed, we will be blessed in all aspects of our lives. It was a wonderful experience to be able to explain to him what being a Latter Day Saint truly means. We choose to "sacrifice" a little bit, but in reality, we open the door for the numberless blessings that Heavenly Father has in store for all of us. I know this principle is true, and I know that all of us would be wise to heed this invitation more carefully.
For those of us who have been baptized and made sacred covenants, I pray that we can continue to live our lives in a way that others will recognize us as followers of Christ. This means that we must be different from the world. We NEED to stand out. It is not an invitation, it is an expectation.
There is no way I would have ever understood the gospel the way I do now without coming on a mission. I cherish obeying, studying, and sharing. The key to conversion is sharing what we learn with others. I'm so grateful for the people the Lord has blessed me with to teach. I pray that I can continue to help them come closer to Christ and make the essential covenants with Heavenly Father for exaltation. I am happy!!
Love, Elder Lloyd
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