6.1.15
This week we had the chance to go to a mission wide iPad
training given by elder Brent Neilson of the seventy as well as this really
awesome guy who is over all of the international MTCs. They both did amazing
jobs and the spirit was so strong! One of my favorite parts of the training was
when they were taking about how the Lord is going to use every righteous method
to take the gospel to the whole world. They also talked a lot about how the
first presidency wants to teach missionaries how to use technology the right
way, so that when the go back into the real world, they won't waste time
playing pointless games, waste time on Face book and use the internet to look
up immoral and crude images. They talked a lot about how pornography is taking
over the united states, and I was surprised to hear how many people were caught
in it's trap. Elder Neilson said that about 80 percent of males in the United
States are using Pornography!!! What a crazy statistic, it motivates me to
makes sure that I do everything in my power to keep myself safe from this
dangerous indulgence. They also briefly mentioned all of the amazing things we
will by able to do as missionaries with this digital tools. The area book,
daily planner, lds tools, Facebook, blogging, emailing and being able to show
videos are only a few of the many things we will be able to use to hasten the
work even further! It was just so crazy to me to see our Heavenly Father using
modern technology to flood the earth with the message of the Restoration. So
many more people will be able to be found and taught through using the i Pads
and once we get members on track with us the work will become even more
amazing. It will take some patience and some time to adjust to using the i Pad
in our teaching, but it will be so worth it once we get a hang of it. It was
also amazing to me to see how much God, the first presidency and President Ames
trust us. What a blessing it is to have i Pads!
Also this week I went on my last exchange for the
transfer. I went with elder Coats and elder Reynolds. Elder Reynolds companion
had to go home due to surgery and is now staying in a trio with the zone
leaders. Being in a trio for the day was a lot of fun, it was a good change of
pace. While on exchange we were able to teach George and Shirley as well as a
really nice less-active lady. The less-active lady was baptized when she was 8,
but hadn't been to church in 45 years. She told us part of her life story and
what her beliefs are. She also shared some of the spiritual experiences that
she has had. As she was telling us her story, I could see that God has been in
her life, and has moved her closer and closer to Jesus Christ. I am confident
that as the zone leaders teach her she will feel the spirit and will have a
desire to come back to church. Also while on the exchange I was able to do my
first baptismal interview. I interviewed this 10 year old girl named Hailey.
She is a really sweet girl, but has a hard time understanding and retaining
knowledge, so the interview was a little challenging. In the end it worked it,
and she ended up saying a very pure and sweet prayer to close the interview. I
have a lot of respect for Hailey, because neither of her parents are members.
She does have an aunt and uncle who are members and have been great to her, but
it would still be hard being the only member of the church in your home
especially when she is so young. The cool thing is, that her dad has started to
take the lessons with the missionaries and even came to church on Sunday! What
a good example she is for her family.
This week we were able to meet some pretty cool
people. One of them is named Kaven. He was a potential investigator in our area
book so we gave him a try. He has been super hard to get a hold of but last
night we stopped by and he let us come inside. He is in his late 50's and due
to surgery is missing part of his lung, so he gets pretty tired. He has lived a
pretty crazy life and told us he grew up in a pretty violent part of town. He
said a lot of his family was killed in drive by shootings! Kaven also knows his
bible very well, but told us that he is open to any truth he can find. Boy do
we have a lot of truth for him! He has also studied Mormonism and knew more
about what we believe then most people I run into. In addition to that he has
studied a lot of other religions as well, he was a really smart guy! We have
him some additional study material and he was excited to learn more. We are
going to be going back on Wedneday and will be watching some short videos as
well as the restoration with him.
Well my time is running short, but I love
you all and hope everyone has a good first week of summer!!
Love,
Elder
Griffin
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